Beautiful Secrets
by Kurumaru
Summary: Ethan and Lena are back together in Gatlin but their happiness doesn't last long. Powerful Casters begin to appear in their dreams and lives. One of which who will stop at nothing to reclaim his life, even if he has to kill Ethan and Lena. My story of what happens after Beautiful Redemption I do not own The Caster Chronicles
1. Chapter 1 - Back to Life

**A/N: So I decided to categorize the story as T opposed to M due to the lack of "Mature" scenes I would be writing now this deep in the story. Due to this the ones I had already written will have some sort of warning above them for those of you (Probably a line of # or just a break followed by bolded text followed by another break) who do not wish to read those. I will make more notes at the top of the existing chapters for those of who who didn't read the text to understand what happened. With that there is no M rated material in this chapter just some introductions and typical introductions to the story.**

I was running, running for my life with Lena. We were in the tunnels, the putrid stench filling my lungs. I turned my head and looked over my shoulder at a man. He was wearing some crossover between a leather jacket and a formal overcoat. He was catching up to us, his hair blowing in the wind that seemed to surround him. I grabbed Lena's hand and willed her to run faster.

_Ethan. Whats going on._

_I don't know L just keep running._

I snuck a look at her face, she was paler than usual. Her red lips stood out even more than usual and her wavy black hair streaming behind her. Our eyes met for a second. Her gold and green eyes were still as beautiful as even but they were darkened by fear. She let loose a small gasp.

_Ethan, your eyes. They're like mine._

We kept running until we were facing a wall, a dead end. I turned around with my back against the wall, Lena leaning on my shoulder. He was tall, barely taller than me. He took his time walking towards us then quickly reappeared in front of us. He grabbed my shoulder and I recoiled at the cold and draining touch. He smiled wickedly and shot a look at Lena before turning back to me. A silvery mark appeared on my right palm, like Lena's except it was white.

"We have been waiting Ethan Wate. It's time for you to become one of us." With that he dissipated and so did the dream.

* * *

I'm tired of these nightmares returning, after all Lena and I have been through you'd think there would be even a little reward for it. This was the eighth consecutive day that I've had a dream like that, the man was always the same and so was his message, but only one thing was different in todays dream, Lena said my eyes were like hers. It was the tiniest detail but it made all the difference.

I've been back in Gatlin for six months now after seeing Amma pass away. It wasn't hard readjusting to my old life, well other than the fact that Ethan-Hating-Emily and Savannah gave me hell and questioned me furiously about my trip to Savannah, which I had no memory about. I figured it out on the third day back to school or so that Lena told everybody that I was in Savannah helping my aunt.

Amma's passing killed me the same way a part of me died when my mom died. At least this time I had Lena to comfort me. I had tried making a pie for Uncle Abner in respect to Amma but my creation was more of a sorry mess of piecrust containing filling that had too much sugar and lemons in it. Dad and I couldn't really cook anything other than the packaged waffles that you got at the Shop and Steal, so I've been eating more frequently at Lena's. I offered my dad the chance to go up to Ravenwood to join us but he refused every time. The rare times where Lena came over for dinner I tried to make something simple but it still came out wrong. She didn't mind the poor quality food and giggled at how messy I was when I finished cooking.

We debated telling my dad about the Caster world but we both thought it would be better if he didn't know. At least there would always be one person in my family that wasn't living a double life. Besides I bet Macon would get hell from my dad about putting me in danger and everything. Or that he'd go insane when we told him that I actually already died twice. He already got enough insanity from the sisters when they were here. We repaired their house with some help from Lena in a few days. I almost missed their bickering for some reason.

It's been amazing with Lena the past few months, we had even more memories than before in this small town. She had her first Christmas at Wate's Landing, the others didn't happen due to her breaking up with me and me kind of dying. I remembered her smiling and laughing, even Macon showed up that day. Other than those special moments, the normal ones were even better now that I didn't have a heart attack or close to one every time I kissed her. I struggled to resist kissing her every moment possible in school and I found myself deliberately making up reasons to hold her hand.

I groaned as I sat up in my bed, despite Links clumsiness I found it back in one piece when I returned. I was sweaty and smelled like a sewer, the hyperrealistic dreams never took it easy with the smell. My bedsheets were all wet from the sweat and I got up and took a shower. Despite all the soap in the world I still smelled horrible. The sewer stench clinging to my body. I looked at my phone, 8:20, Lena would be here now, waiting for me to go do something with her. I put on a t-shirt and jeans and went downstairs for the microwave bacon and toaster waffles. Lena was already sitting in a chair with my Jackson sweatshirt on. I smiled and walked over to her sitting right next to her.

_Good morning beautiful._

She blushed and jabbed me playfully. She had already eaten her share and I got up to get mine. I quickly devoured the food in seconds and I saw Lena roll her eyes. I put the dish in the sink and picked up on of Amma's number 2 pencils and wrote my dad a note with my right hand. He seemed to get more and more exhausted every time he came back from the university, he usually woke up at noon when he didn't have to work. Today I had no idea where we were going to go or do.

We walked outside and began to go for the old Volvo. When I got back my dad recently bought a new car so I got the Volvo. I think he was also tired of me hitching rides with Link. Lena got into the passenger seat and I turned on the radio and Bohemian Rhapsody came out of the speakers. I quickly turned to her and kissed her cheek, she swatted me away playfully. I drove to Summerville up to the water tower. I couldn't help myself from sneaking looks at Lena and every time she caught me she threatened to put a cast on me to keep me focused. When we arrived at the water tower I opened my door and hurried over to open hers.

_You're such a gentleman Ethan Wate._

_ Not really, would a gentleman have spent all those days with his girlfriend in a bed?_

I let her climb up first and I followed behind, pretending that if she fell I'd be there to help her. When we got to the top we both went over to our ledge and hung our feet over. I saw the heart that Lena drew with a number in it. She took the mini sharpie from her necklace a drew another heart this time with our initials in it. I drew her closer and kissed her firmly enjoying the brief sensation before she pushed me away.

_Not here Ethan, not when we can both fall to our deaths._

_ I don't care as long as I fall with you._

She punched me in the arm and got up. She was going for the ladder. I quickly followed her back down and into the car where we made out passionately before we were both out of breath. Her eyes were bright and full with love and happiness and I couldn't help but to kiss her another time. I got back into the drivers seat and she got back into the passenger and we drove back to Gatlin.

We ate at the Daree keen, Gatlin's greasy version of the Dairy King. Link and Ridley joined us after we just sat down with out food. I sat by Lena while Link and Ridley sat on the other side of the booth. I fed Lena her fries which still smelled like old oil, old hair and rats. She smiled and my desire to kiss her again spiked but I controlled myself.

We spent the afternoon at the Cineplex with Link and Ridley. We sat in the middle avoiding the last three rows which we usually sat in. It just made us want to do it even more back there because we knew we could. Today the movie was some kind of action movie about a rogue cop. It was terrible because I knew what happened at the very beginning, then again I guess every movie was horrible if you were a Wayward.

By the time we left the Cineplex it was already half past four. We drove to Ravenwood and took the route to Greenbrier. I laid down with her under the old oak and put my arm around her. She leaned her head against me and we sat there just enjoying each other's company until we heard Macon yell that it was time for dinner. We both hurried into the manor. The meal at lunch wasn't very good so it was nice to have dinner here. I kissed Lena one last time before going to the dining room.

_I love you L._

_ I love you more than you can imagine Ethan._


	2. Chapter 2 - A Night At Ravenwood

**A/N: There is a shower scene in this. It isn't graphic in my opinion but I'll leave a warning when appropriate.**

* * *

Dinner was like any other at Ravenwood. Exotic dishes pull of birds and plants I have never seen lined up at the middle of the table in delicate China plates. In the middle, there was a platter of pulled pork sandwiches, Amma's best dish. As usual there was enough food and seats to serve all of Gatlin's football team with the DAR and The Sisters of the Confederacy at the same time. Macon was already sitting down at the head chair when he looked up and gave me a smile. He had a huge grin whenever I saw him now, I guess it was for returning to Lena.

"Good evening Mr. Wate. Will you be joining us for dinner tonight? Ridley has opted to go with Mr. Lincoln for her evening meal." He asked even though he already knew the answer.

"Yes sir. If you don't mind of course."

"No problem at all. Are you treating my niece well?" He asked another question he already knew.

"Of course he is uncle." Lena circled her arms around me and gave me a hug and I returned it.

"Well then, let us eat. You know how Kitchen feels about cold food."

I sat down across from Lena, just so I could look at her more. I grabbed a pulled pork sandwich from the center, biting into it expecting Carolina Gold. To my surprise it was there and I looked at Macon. He smiled and continued to eat his steak after serving himself more wine, his appetite has only gotten larger since I came back. I took another bite from the sandwich, savoring the flavor and then ravenously finished it.

I snuck a look at Lena who was busy eating her steak. Her gold and green eyes reflected the light to make it seem they were shining. It just made her look even more beautiful. I still haven't decided what I would get her for her birthday. I only had thirteen days left and I haven't had a clue on what to get. That and I had to make it even more special since this would probably be the first normal birthday she would have since her fifteenth. After all I was dead last february and died on her sixteenth which also involved Macon's death.

_What're you looking at? _She caught me staring, I met her eyes and she smiled.

_The most beautiful girl I've ever seen._

She blushed a bit before resuming her dinner. I had already devoured five sandwiches and was close to full. Dinner would be serving desert soon and I didn't know if I could stomach anything. On cue, the dishes in front of us disappeared and were replaced by cookies and cakes and pies, baked to perfection. I noticed a lemon meringue and shot another look at Macon. He smiled again and grabbed a cookie to eat.

"I may have given Kitchen a look at Amarie's recipes." He took a bite out of the cookie and I reached for another one myself. It tasted just like the ones Amma made and I felt my heart fall for a second before I felt another warm sensation course through me. Lena was trying to cheer me up. I looked up at her and smiled.

_Thanks L._

_ No problem Ethan._

"If you'll excuse me I must be getting to my study." He nodded at Lena and turned to grasp my shoulder with his hand. The plates disappeared and we were left alone in the dining room. Lena walked around the table, dragging me up from the chair and into the foyer. As I started to head for the door she grabbed my hand.

_Stay with me tonight Ethan._

_ Are you insane! Imagine what Macon would do if he saw me in your bed next to you._

_ He's sleeping in the study tonight, besides he doesn't come up unless I ask for it, he's too busy researching or something. _I turned around and her eyes met mine. Hers fell for a bit, looking at me like she was disappointed and started to go upstairs.

_Hold on L. I never said I wouldn't stay._ She turned back smiling and I carried her upstairs like she was bride.

_You're so manipulative L. _She punched me in the arm.

_It's not that hard on you._

I dropped her on the bed and was about to lay on it when she rejected me.

"You smell like a sewer Ethan, use my shower." She pointed to the bathroom that I had never been in. She let a sly smile loose and I knew something for bad or good was going to happen.

* * *

**Just being on the safe side. It begins here.**

* * *

I walked over to the shower, turning the water on, waiting for it to turn warm. It was one of those showers with a stone to sit on in it. I scanned the room and saw an old unused makeup kit standing in the corner of her countertop. The tiles were slick and cold but the room had the warm feeling the rest of her's had. I striped down and heard a slam behind me. Lena had closed the door but something was even more surprising. She was standing there in front of the door, naked, a creeping pink was forming on her cheeks. I didn't know what to say.

_I thought I'd join you Ethan. _She flashed a smile before blushing again.

_You are insane L, what would Macon say if he saw this._ She walked up to me and look me in the eyes.

_Whats wrong with a shower?_

She hopped into the shower and stuck her hand out. I grabbed it and got in as well. The first few minutes were passed by with me sitting down, staring at a tile on the wall to avoid my body from noticing Lena. She was letting the water flow into her hair making the entire shower smell like wet lemons and rosemary. I inhaled deeply, savoring the smell that first drove me to her. She sat down next to me and quickly pecked me on the cheek.

_This is torture L._

_ I thought you liked these things._ She looked disappointed.

_I do, I won't lie about that. It just that I don't want to make you do something you'll regret. I don't want to hurt you by forcing you to do it._

_ I'm almost eighteen Ethan, you won't be forcing me to do anything. Now that I have you back, it's hard to control myself from kissing you every second. I won't regret it Ethan, I want you._

Her eyes burned with something beyond passion and her face was pleading.

_Not now L. Let's wait for your birthday at least._

_ Birthday sex? How original._

Her face fell and I grabbed it with my hands. I pressed my lips onto hers and we began to make out passionately in the shower. I ran my hands down her back and she did the same to mine, our tongues invading each other's mouths before dancing with the other. I drew her in closer and had to resist the temptation to do what I wanted to do. I drew away from her and sat back down, trying to catch my breath. At least it wasn't from the electricity this time.

_At least tell me you'll help me wash._

* * *

**End.**

* * *

I rolled my eyes and stood up once more, each of us helping each other clean. I focused on the wall even more as it happened, willing myself to ignore what Lena was doing. The shower eventually turned off and I sighed in relief. After we dried off and dressed I laid down on the bed right next to Lena. I wrapped my arm around her and drew her close enjoying touching her warm and soft skin. I brought my lips down and kissed her once more before I pushed myself away and laid back.

_What's wrong Ethan?_ She laid on my chest, playing with my shirt. I attempted to look away to avoid the way she was laying on me.

_Nothing L._

_ Please tell me that's your phone in your pocket._

I blushed a bit before ignoring her comment completely. I pushed her off of me and wrapped my arms around her again. She nestled her head on my chest and curled up like she always does when we sleep together. I rubbed her back as I laid my head down at her hair, enjoying the smell of her perfume. She quickly fell to sleep and I soon followed. The nightmares never came during our deep sleep, not even they would dare show themselves when we were next to each other.


	3. Chapter 3 - A Mysterious Face

**A/N: Nothing more than typical Link innuendo.**

* * *

I woke up to find Lena still curled up in a ball with her head resting deep in my chest. I didn't move an inch, she looked so peaceful and I wanted to keep it that way. Sunlight flooded into her room through the two windows. She was so beautiful in the light with her long eyelashes and crescent moon birthmark. She started to twitch and her eyelids began to open. I looked at her eyes that seemed to glow in the sunlight and when she smiled I leaned down to plant a kiss on her forehead.

_Good morning sleepyhead. _I kelted quietly. She shifted in my arms but ultimately ended up deeper in my clutch than before.

_Hey._

_ You sleep well last night?_

_ Best I had in days with all the nightmares and such._

I chucked a bit and she jabbed me a bit before I settled back down. She fought her way out of my grasp and headed for the mirror. She picked up her comb and started attempting to straighten her hair. It was all tangled as a result of our shower and the sleep from last night. I got out of the bed using being able to touch Lena as motivation. I put on my jeans and sneakers and began to walk to her. I looked over her shoulder into the mirror to see her face. She smiled and batted me away. I tried to look hurt but it only made her laugh and smile harder.

I heard a ripping noise and turned around leisurely knowing that it was Link. There was something distinct about his rip, it should more clumsy and jagged than John's or Macon's did. Link was standing by Lena's door and ran his hand through his spiky blonde hair. He looked over at me and Lena and immediately assumed the worst, as usual.

"Finally gettin' it on Wate?" He held out his fist for me to pump but I just stood by Lena and rolled my eyes.

"Not yet Link." I turned to kiss Lena and she finished straightening her hair. She giggled and turned to return kiss on my cheek. Link stood there waiting patiently for us to finish.

"I've been searching for you. Did you forget we were goin' to Summerville today? You know to buy Lena's stuff?" I also slapped myself, I forgot all about my arrangements with Link to buy Lena's gift. I leaned down and kissed Lena on the lips until Link stated that he was getting grey hairs watching us. He also told me that it was noon and I almost had a heart attack. Maybe Macon saw us together and left so he could kill me later. I quickly disregarded him and turned to Lena giving her a goodbye-for-right-now kiss.

Link told me that he could rip us out of Lena's room into Summerville Mall's parking. I refused considering what it would look like if someone passed by saw us. So we took the beater. Link blasted his demo tapes that were bad as usual. I was still thinking about what to get Lena. I must have made it apparent since Link shot a look at me and sighed.

"Still don't what to get her?" He said while messing with the beater's audio system, trying to get the static out.

"Yea I have no idea what to get your girlfriend that practically brought you back to life twice. That and she's the most powerful person out there." I played with my fingers before just sitting back as usual.

"Well, you know what always works? Jewelry" I chucked a bit since it worked before.

"No kidding."

By the time we got to Summerville Mall the place was packed. Weekends drove everyone from Gatlin and Summerville to this one spot. Link parked at what seemed the only available spot that was all the way in the back. I guess it worked out since I was thinking about Lena's gift. We walked to the mall rather quickly. I guess Link wanted to get this part over with so he could go back home and make out with Ridley.

I opened my wallet to see how much money I was dealing with. I only expect maybe $200 since I already used it all on Lena's Christmas present. I barely worked anymore and money somehow seemed to appear out of thin air. I found myself maybe a couple of new crisp hundreds and closed my wallet, a perk of having a Caster girlfriend. As we walked through the doors, I immediately noticed something new. There was a new jewelry shop right across from us. It was relatively small and had only a few people in there. I looked harder and sighed. Emily and Savannah were there drooling over the metal and gems.

Link told me that he was going to go search for his own thing for Lena and practically left me to die with Emily and Savannah. Traitor. I walked into the shop where I immediately felt the air change. It was thicker and more dense, like every time I passed through Ravenwood's binds. I immediately saw what I was going to get for Lena. There was a beautiful ring in the display where Emily and Savannah were practically pushing their faces against the glass. I called over the salesclerk and asked him for the ring. Emily and Savannah quickly reacted to my voice and turned to face me. I prepared myself for the eventual questioning.

"Oh hi there Ethan. I didn't know you liked jewelry." Emily drawled while Savannah continued to drool over another ring.

"Hello Emily. Didn't expect to see you here."

"How are you plannin' to pay for that ring, haven't seen you work since summer?" She crossed her arms.

"I borrowed some money from my dad." I was lying.

"Hmm good for you. Is that for Old man Ravenwood's niece? You know the witch?"

"Her name is Lena and she's no more a witch than you Emily." I turned back to the sales clerk and asked for the price. I bargained it down a bit and payed. Emily and Savannah already left the shop and now I was the only one here.

"Thank you Mr. Wate for the business." I stopped and almost jumped up. Emily said my first name but never spoke my last name. I looked up at his smiling face and took a quick look at him eyes. They were amethyst and he had an air of power around him. I stood where I was trying to seem unafraid of this new person. He stuck out his right hand for me to shake and then I saw a silvery pattern on his palm. It seemed to glow and fade in a pattern.

"Who the hell are you?" I stared at him, he was about my height maybe a bit taller. He had jet black hair that was spiky, quite like Larkin's. He was a little bit older than me, maybe in his early twenties at most twenty-five. He seemed like an incubus with his hair and whatnot. I guessed he was strong since you could see the dress shirt stretch when he moved.

"Someone that you will know in due time. If it is my name you're asking, it's Alexander Kent." I quickly walked out of the shop and looked back to see nothing there. A wall was where the shop once was and people looked at me like I was Jesus. I guess it did look like I walked through a wall. I guessed Link would be at the dollar store so I navigated around the mall to get there. As expected I found him in the corner looking at God knows what.

"Hey Link. You done?" He was carrying some stuffed penguin thing.

"Yea man. We leavin'?" I nodded and we started to go. We left the mall through the entrance we walked through and I glance at the wall where I saw the shop. It was just a wall.

"Link did you see a shop there when we walked in?" I pointed over to the empty wall.

"Nah man. What did you eat today?" I shook my head, maybe I was seeing things. I knew I wasn't though. Since I pulled out a purple box from my sweatshirt pocket. Inside was the same beautiful band that I saw in the shop. Either I was going crazy, or the man only wanted certain people in.

_Hey L, you there? _I felt Lena ease her mind into mine until we were connected.

_As always Ethan._

_ I got your present and I have something to tell you. So I was wondering if I could stay over or you come over to my place._

_ I'll come over today. Why can't we just talk like this about it?_

_ I don't know, I saw something different today and I'm a bit worried._

_ Okay I'll be there whenever you get back._

The drive back to Gatlin was quick since there were no cars, I mean who would want to go there. Link dropped me off at Wate's Landing and quickly sped off somewhere, probably to meet Ridley. I saw Lena sitting on my porch steps in her red sweater. I smiled at the memory of us parking at the water tower. She ran towards me and jumped into my arms kissing me passionately on the lips.

_ I missed you. _She looked up at me with her huge eyes. I responded to her with another kiss on her cheek and led her inside. We climbed the creaking old stairs and walked to my room. I didn't shut the door since my dad was busy researching for his book still and he wouldn't hear us. She made herself comfortable on my bed and I laid down right next to her. I almost didn't want to tell her about my run in at the shop. I had to though.

"L, do you know who Alexander Kent is?" I asked reluctantly and Lena could tell. She shook her head and put it back into my chest.

"Why are you asking Ethan?"

"I had a little run-in with him today at the mall when I was buying your gift."

"He has Uncle Barclay's last name."

"Yea he was different too."

"How?"

"His eyes were purple and you know that swirling black pattern on your palm? He had a shining silver one instead."

"I never heard of any of this. Could it just be a Mortal who's too flamboyant?"

"I doubt any Mortal has purple eyes. To make things even more confusing the shop I found him in apparently never existed."

"So you didn't get my gift." I chucked a bit as she poked me in the ribs.

"No thats the problem." I pulled out the purple box from my pocket. Lena tried to grab it but I just held it away from her. "I bought this and it's real all right."

"Let's ask Uncle Macon sometime. I just want to enjoy the normal moments we have left until my family comes to town."

I laughed and she smuggled deeper into my chest on my bed. It just occurred to me how long Link and I have been gone and that it was almost time to sleep. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled up the covers for both of us. I leaned in to kiss her before we both drifted off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Birthday

**A/N: Two paragraphs of a minor bed scene. Not too graphic but better to be safe than sorry.**

* * *

**Lena POV**

Waves were crashing along the shore and I was sitting with Ethan alone on the beach. I don't know where but I just knew it was paradise. I rested my head on his shoulder and he put his arm around me. I wonder why I was having this dream and I wonder if Ethan was having it too.

_ L? Happy eighteenth birthday._

He looked me in the eyes and ran his hand through my hair. He smiled and I saw his brown eyes glow. I couldn't help myself from kissing him, so I nuzzled my neck with his nose and kissed me on my cheek, and kept on move down onto my neck and collarbone_._

_ Ethan._

_ Don't worry L, this is just a taste of what you're getting tonight._

A tall muscular figure walked in front of us and broke the silence of the scene.

"Why are you two still dreaming?"

He was tall and strong. He was wearing a gold and maroon leather overcoat with no undershirt, you could see all his features mostly his abs. He wore the matching leather pants with charms dangling off his left pocket. His hair was short, black and spiky, his eyes were purple and had a look of worry in them. From his neck there was a necklace in the shape of a seven point star with a ruby in the middle.

"Who are you?" I said worried. "Why are you here in our dream?"

He laughed and saw my fear I thought he was going to strike any second now. Ethan wrapped his arms around me protectively and I got as close to him as possible.

"I'm am no threat to you, truly" He held his hand up "Make me swear on anything I promise you I'm here to help you not harm you. Why else would I help Ethan make his decision about your gift Lena? Don't worry it's not like I made him get it I just guided him so it still came from his heart."

"How can we trust you?" Ethan said with a look of suspicion on his face. "We don't even know what you are."

"If you don't trust me then don't trust me I still won't ever harm you, only those who want to harm you."

"Like a guardian angel." I said

"Precisely, as for what I am you will see later. I go by many names by my real name is Alexander Grandis Kent, firstborn of Barclay Kent and Delphine Duchannes"

"Thats impossible, Ridley was the firstborn."

"They never told you about me? Makes sense theres a reason why they want to hide the Duchannes greatest failure. Anyway my time is running short so I must be going."

He turned and looked at Ethan.

"Things are not always what they seem Mr. Wate. Southern family trees are often missing a few things. Be careful about your decision to marry Lena Duchannes, it will attract, how should I put it, unpleasant guests. I can't protect you from all of them. So please be careful."

With that he vanished but didn't rip he just faded into nothing.

I woke up with a jolt and looked around. I wasn't in my iron four poster bed I was in Ethan's creaking mahogany bed. I held my self over him and shook him awake. He was still half asleep and didn't even know I was here. He immediately sat upright clearly spooked by the fact that I was in his room.

_L? What are you doing here, you know how many heart attacks the Sisters would have if they saw you up here with me?_

_ I don't know either Ethan I think it was because of that dream._

_ You had that dream too? With Alexander Kent on the beach?_

I nodded.

_I should be getting home and prepare for tonight._

_ Yea I'm going to prepare myself for your special day L._

_ By the way you never said you were planing to marry me. _I poke him in the ribs playfully. His cheeks flushed with pink all the sudden.

_I thought it was implied L. You are the love of my life._

As I made my way back up to Ravenwood, Uncle Macon was thankfully still sleeping in the tunnels. I went up to my room and took a shower. I dried myself and decided what I was going to wear. I put on my nicest underwear with the matching bra and covered it with a white tank top and one of my nicest skirts. My family would be arriving soon and I had to make sure Ethan and I would be alone tonight.

I heard a knock at the door.

"It's open." Hoping that it was just Macon, thankfully it was.

"Are you nervous for your birthday Lena?" He asked calmly.

"Yes, I'm ready Uncle M."

"Good the family will be here soon. Mr. Wate and Mr. Lincoln both said that they would be coming in the afternoon. They have some last minute arrangements for your gifts they said."

"What about Liv and John?"

"Ms. Durand and John are arriving at the same time with Mr. Wate"

I reached up and hugged him and he welcomed my embrace.

"I will give you some time to prepare Lena." With that he left and closed the door behind him. I knew he was going to make this night perfect. It was already going to be perfect enough with Ethan.

"Still anxious about your birthday?" I jumped up a little bit and turned around to find Alexander Kent standing in the corner.

"What are you doing here?"

"I thought it was obvious I'm just here to check on you."

He faded away as fast as he appeared and I couldn't help to wonder what he was.

Around three everyone started to arrive, my family appeared mostly though the front door. Reece appeared out of Ridley's room through the tunnels. Nobody was worried or felt sorry about me for once. After all I had already claimed myself and Ethan was alive. I remember my last birthday. The cake was good and the food was great but my heart was still shattered. Ethan's seat was empty and untouched. This year it would be different. Ethan would sit right beside me like he had all those times. He would make me laugh and everything would be okay.

Ethan walked into Ravenwood with Link, Liv and John. He gave me a smile and hastily put the same purple box back into his sweatshirt pocket. Link was holding a box the size of his head. Liv and John had another box similar to Ethan's. Ethan walked up to me and planted a kiss on me. I wrapped my arms around him and embraced him tightly. He returned the hug and brought his lips down onto mine.

After the reunion and celebrations Ethan and I snuck up to my room. I climbed onto the bed laying down flat down on my back. Ethan laid down next to me. He reached down into his pocket and pulled out the purple box and stuck it in my hand.

"L, I really wanted to give you something that you could keep forever. I hope this is special."

"As long as it's from you it will always be special." He smiled at my comment and I opened the box.

Inside was a golden band with a square emerald planted in the center. The gold was manipulated to form vine like designs. Ethan's famous last words and our initials were carved onto in inside of the ring. Ethan took the ring out of the box. The band seemed to glow and radiate it's own light. The emerald took on the hue of Caster green and the gold looked more white than yellow. As he slipped it on I felt the warmth of the metal course through my body. The ring still shone brilliantly. I leaned up to kiss Ethan on the lips long and hard. He returned the kiss and soon our tongues began to dance and intrude each other's mouths. I felt a dampness begin to form between my thighs right before Ethan pulled away.

"Well, what do you think?"

"It's amazing Ethan. I love you and I want you."

"I love you too L and I want you more than you can imagine."

* * *

**Start**

* * *

He leaned back down continuing the kiss that he pulled away from. I wrapped my legs around his body and he started to move his hand up and down my back. He broke away from my lips and began to move down, kissing everything on his way through creating a trail of flames. My body was burning with passion and I couldn't contain myself for much longer. He dropped down to my stomach and started to work his way up, taking off the tank top as he journeyed. Soon I found myself throwing the clothing away.

He tossed my bra aside and soon took off my skirt. I was left there on the bed in my underwear. I let my mind slip away during the moments of pure bliss. Our bodies were forming perfectly for one another. He made me climax so many times that I lost count. My bed was soaked in our fluids but I didn't care, not when he was nearby. It was exhilarating and exhausting. When we finally stopped I was still panting trying to catch my breath.

* * *

**End**

* * *

He was the first to get up and dress again. I followed him shortly, almost tripping over his shoes in the process. He kissed me again and ran his fingers through my hair. I looked up at his eyes that seemed more green than brown now and kissed him back. He took my hand and guided me to the door.

"Come on L. They'll all be wondering where we were."

We managed to make it back to the living room before anyone caught us. There were a couple of close calls, but I managed to get us out of them. Ethan led me over to a spot on the coach to sit. Ridley saw us apparently and got up from her spot with Link and made her way towards us.

"So, how was is cuz? Did it feel good? Are you sore?" I jumped a little at what Ridley was saying. She smirked.

"Oh what? Did you think I wouldn't notice you going to your room with Ethan? What would Uncle Macon say about that hmm?"

"How many people did you tell." The color was starting to drain from my face.

"No one yet."

"Please Rid, don't tell him. I beg you."

"Don't worry cuz your secret is safe with me."

Someone knocked against the door and everyone heard it. Macon made his way to the entrance equally shocked and confused as everyone. I doubted it was another installment of the Jackson rave party like my sixteenth birthday. When Macon opened the door, a rush of cold air permeated it's way through Ravenwood. I doubted it was the cool night breeze. The air was colder and more still than before, it chilled my lungs and my body. I snuggled near Ethan for warmth.

A tall man stood at the doorway. He had white hair and the same amethyst eyes as Alexander Kent, though his seemed more violet than the light purple of Kent's. He had a scar slashed across his right cheek and the word fear written on his left cheek. He had on a pitch black overcoat that looked like it was made out of some lizard's hide, luminous metal was adorned extravagantly on the clothing giving it a regal appearance while serving as armor. The straps used to close the coat were open and let his features appear, mainly his abs. Over where his heart was there was a X shaped scar. On the center of his chest was a dark swirling pattern native to Dark Casters. His fingers were adorned with rings that were all black and malicious looking. The back of his left hand was covered with a design that seemed to change.

He disappeared and was soon directly in front of Ethan. A torrent of heavy winds was released from his body, sending everything flying except Ethan. I flew back and landed on my butt. I rubbed it a little bit sating the pain a little. The man grabbed Ethan by the neck and peeled his eyes open. The man was covered in a shroud of dark energy, blacker than night itself. He lifted Ethan helplessly off the ground and reached for something inside his overcoat. He pulled out a knife and quickly jabbed it into Ethan. I prepared myself for the blood shower than would follow but nothing happened. The man looked happy and let him fall unconscious before releasing him from his grip.

With that he created a cocoon of darkness around him. The pitch black egg soon contracted until it was gone. The chill in the air was gone and warmth began to seep into my body again. I ran over to Ethan who was still out cold. Macon soon followed kneeling beside me and held his hand over Ethan's heart.

"He's alive Lena, don't worry about that."

"Who the hell was that." He paused checking on Ethan some more before answering me.

"One of the most evil men alive, an incubus that matches the darkness of Abraham or exceeds it."

He paused again for dramatic effect. "Lucian Ravenwood."


	5. Chapter 5 - The Prince of Hell

**A/N: Nothing except references to the scene in the previous chapter.**

* * *

"Ethan! Ethan, please wake up!"

I was sobbing into his chest, for an hour now. I gave him two hours like Uncle Macon said to but he hasn't waken up yet. I don't know what Lucian did to him but I just wanted him beside me incase if anything happened. He's been out cold for three hours now and I was worried sick about him. His body was warm and his heart was still beating. I felt a twitch and I saw his eyes flutter open soon. I returned to sobbing into his chest and he caressed me with his hands. He leaned down and kissed me gently on my forehead.

_Nineteen Moons, Nineteen tears_

_The Prince of Hell himself appears._

_Blood will spill and hearts will break_

_Free his soul, create, unmake._

_You hear that L?_

I didn't answer, I didn't want to think about Princes of Hell, blood spilled or broken hearts. He rubbed my head and I stared into his eyes. They were green, Caster green. I knew I saw something change in his eyes when we had sex tonight. He tucked a stray curl behind my ear and saw my shock.

_Whats wrong Lena Beana?_

_ Your eyes._

_ What?_

_ They're green not brown._

_ So I'm a Caster now?_

_ Ethan ... I don't think it's as simple as that. We should go ask Uncle M. what it means._

_ Where did he head off to anyway?_

_ Down to the study as usual._

He held my hand as we walked down the halls of Ravenwood. All the guests had already left. Link and the rest left me alone with Ethan which they knew I wanted. Everything was rearranged and placed back to where it was before the massive gales of wind hit us. The first thing Ethan did was go into the powder room and look in the mirror. I waited patiently for him and we continued back down to Macon's underground study. Macon was sitting down in a chair behind his desk when he looked up and smiled at us.

"Hello Lena, Mr. Wate. A pleasure to see that you are all right." His smile was quickly replaced by rage when he saw Ethan's eyes. "Lena. Did you have sex with Mr. Wate tonight without my approval?" I froze and must have blushed because Macon sighed and sat back down leisurely in his chair.

"How did you know?"

He leaned back more into his chair and motioned for us to sit in the two chairs facing his desk. "When a Mortal and a Caster have sex the Mortal receives some of the Caster's power. It's why Mortals and Casters cannot have sexual relationships. The shear power that is released to them is enough to make their hearts stop beating, especially on a full moon and a Caster's eighteenth birthday when their powers evolve again. Of course as always, you two seem different. I don't know why he didn't die when he had sex with you but it's always good to not have another corpse. In matter of fact, due to the circumstances on which you two enjoyed your evening, he's probably as powerful of a natural as you Lena."

"So I can cast now Mr. Ravenwood?" Ethan looked excited.

"No, nothing of significance. Your power is far too weak right now for any cast. It might be a few hours for you before you can do anything of importance. Then again I could be wrong, normal Mortals seemed to have to wait months before their powers register. If you ever feel like you want to learn a cast just ask Lena or I. Assuming it's a responsible cast."

"Uncle we have a question."

"You two always do."

"Who are Alexander Kent and Lucian Ravenwood?"

He fell back into his chair again as if he was about to tell us family secrets that no one has ever hear of. His green eyes dimmed and dulled. He clearly didn't want to talk about the two men.

"Well, let us start with Mr. Kent." He shifted a bit in his chair. "He was always ... different. He was born with his amethyst eyes instead of the usual Caster green ones. It was a sign that he was a Celestial, a special Caster that could do anything, from normal Caster abilities to manipulating the elements of Light and Dark themselves. They are extremely powerful and able to crush most other Casters with ease. We erased him from the family tree due to his actions. He had a friend, his name I can't quite remember. He ran off to aid him in his causes."

Ethan sat up a bit "So Celestials are like the superman of the Caster world?"

"I guess you could say that, then again I don't see how a man who can fly can even be compared to us. They can also do what I like to call Rift walking. They can fade in and out of existence. That was what the black cocoon was it was just a little over glorified. They can control the atmosphere around them. Did you notice as Lucian walked in the air chilled? They can control the natural elements as well and manipulate them with their Light and Darkness. Celestials are so powerful that they can turn other normal Casters Light or Dark by using their energy. Mr. Kent never showed any ambitions to change others and only strove to help his friend and family. A good man if you ask me."

He readjusted his seat, dropping the book he was reading before onto the desk. "No onto Lucian. He was my one of my father Silas' uncles. He made a deal with the _Book of Moons_ that turned him into a Celestial, Incubus hybrid. As a result he doesn't have the usual balance of Light and Dark that other Celestials do. Before he could leave though Abraham dealt a massive blow onto his body, creating the scar that you saw on his chest. The mark on his torso I believe you know. The mark on his hand however is a mystery to me also."

He lit a cigar and continued. "Lucian serves only himself and is searching for a partner to conquer the ultimate control of the Caster world. The Era. It's an elite group of Celestials that control everyone's fate. They were the creators of _The Caster Chronicles. _They control all other aspects of the world such as death and life."

I shuddered Ethan was the partner that he was searching for. "So Ethan is the one he's searching for."

"You are correct Lena. Ethan's light is abnormally strong, I did not detect any darkness within him. I do not know why or what Lucian wants or needs Ethan. He is very strange. If he had pure Darkness and pure Light though the result could be completely catastrophic."

"You're very correct Macon. I haven't seen you in years. I'm delighted that I may enlighten you today. It's not everyday someone talks about our kind." Alexander Kent rifted into existence behind Macon. "I would be glad to share my knowledge."


	6. Chapter 6 - Power Awakened

**A/N: Nothing here.**

* * *

"What are you doing here? Alexander Kent..." I shouted.

He looked down at me from my position with his amethyst eyes. They shone in the dim light of Macon's study. I noticed a hint of brown in his eyes, just like when I noticed green in Ethan's. He flashed his hand over an empty space and a upholstered chair appeared out of thin air. His eyes stopped glowing and flashed brown again before becoming a lucid purple. He sat down on the extravagant chair and crossed his legs. He looked bored and entertained at our confusion. Macon went up the stairwell back to the manor, since we had a guest to lecture us this time.

"Anders if you will Miss Duchannes. I distinctly remember you or Mr. Wate over there saying me being a guardian angel. Well, you're mostly correct, minus the guardian or angel part. I can tell that you all are nervous so I'll just tell you what I know and leave." His eyes flashed brown again. "Lucian Ravenwood does not have evil intentions of his own, his purpose is to carry them out. As Mr. Ravenwood said he was an incubus, he can Travel. That alone isn't special considering us Celestials have access to the rift but he can rip to other dimensions. He hasn't done so but I fear that his master might be waiting for an opportune chance."

"Why would his master need an incubus that can rip to other dimensions?" So Lucian was a pawn after all. An important pawn like John was to Abraham.

"I'd first like to clarify a few things. Your uncle stated that Lucian wanted to conquer the Era. That is wrong. He is but a requirement for his master to do so. Now that you know his master is the true villain here's the thing about the Era. It's located in a dimension of its own. He needs someone of equal power to help him create a rift to this new dimension so he can freely Travel to and back from the Era. That's where you come into play Mr. Wate." He turned his gaze at Ethan. "Lucian's master has seen your potential when you defeated Angelus at the Far Keep. More importantly he saw you defeat Sarafine. He saw your effect on people and how you can turn their hearts. A trait of the pure Light. You see where this is going now?"

"He will stop at nothing to take Ethan away from me." I said it quietly, while my face whitened a bit. My body was turning colder as the conversation dragged on. Ethan could be torn away from me and there was nothing I could do. I may be the most powerful Caster but I couldn't even match a Celestial.

"Correct. When you two had fun in bed tonight a massive power spike was detected by us Celestials. I got here as quickly as I could but it was too late. Lucian was already here and in my current state I wouldn't stand a chance against him. Tonight was just a test, Lucian detected the absence of Darkness in Ethan. You're lucky he didn't do any casts Miss Duchannes. Pure energy in that form would rip you apart. I cannot protect you as much as I could before, against Abraham and Sarafine and whatnot. My powers are waning somehow. You seemed to notice Miss. Duchannes, my eyes flicker brown sometimes. If Lucian takes Ethan away at this point I can't stop it no more than I can defeat him."

_Don't worry L, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon._

_ You better not be Ethan, I don't know what I'd do without you now._

_ Now that I have real power I can protect you._

_ It's not me that they want, it's you._

I felt Ethan's hand creep up my thigh and I felt the warmth return to my body. I turned to look at him. He had a huge smile plastered on his face. His Caster green eyes glimmered in the dim light. The warmth seeping into my leg was intoxicating. I felt tired just feeling the warmth. I couldn't risk losing this sensation there must be a way to stop Lucian Ravenwood.

"You can't defeat him Lena, not without the help of Ethan. He hasn't even found his powers or knows how to use them. Lucian is immune to many things and has many strengths. He retained his incubus strength with the ability to Travel. Whereas rifting takes time, Traveling is instantaneous. He is dangerous. The amount of Darkness in his body is great. Anything hurled at him will just get ignored unless it is pure. The only way to defeat him is to-"

He stopped and his face immediately drained of color. The sarcastic smile that was plastered on his face was gone. He looked more like a man about to be sentenced to death. I looked past him onto the wall. A figure was appearing in the wall. The features were stretched out from it and its hand was on Anders' shoulder. Slowly the body was materializing from the wall, it was even weirder than watching Link rip.

"So stupid, Mr. Kent. I do believe that you were going to tell him my secret?" the body finished and then his head. It was Lucian Ravenwood. "I will have to teach you some manners then or just kill you."

A pillar of Dark fire erupted from underneath Anders' chair, devouring the furniture hungrily and singing him in the process. Lucian prepared a charge of lightning in his hand and lashed out. His fist impaled Anders' stomach and the electricity shot through him. He fell to the floor in agony while his body arced black and blue static. I felt anger swelling up inside of me and I set the spot where Lucian was standing on fire. He laughed and the fire disappeared as quickly as it came. Ethan and I stood up and back to the other side of the study.

"Silly girl, you think something as mundane as ordinary fire can touch me?" His leather overcoat was perfect, not even a button missing. His hair was glowing red hot and his eyes deepened in color, almost seeming black. He ripped away and I soon found him centimeters from me. He grasped my neck viciously and lifted me high in the air. I tried to use my powers but to no avail. The same cloud of Darkness enveloped him like when he choked Ethan. He took out another knife, it was a sinister looking blade. I felt myself blacking out, I didn't know what was going to happen first, I get stabbed or choked to death.

"Let her go!" I heard Ethan shout.

"Make me, Wayward. Only you know the way." The air began to shift as Lucian was repelled from me and flew back into the wall momentarily surprised. I gasped for air hungrily and my eyes came back into focus. He stood up and summoned another Dark sphere enveloping him inside it. He laughed as the ball compressed itself and disappeared. Anders was already gone and the only thing remaining from him was the blood on the floor.


	7. Chapter 7 - Claimed

**A/N: Nothing here.**

**Ethan POV**

I woke to the sound of birds and sunlight shining into my face. The peaceful scene seemed inadequate for the surprises that we saw last night. I noticed I was sleeping in Lena's bed and for the first time did not fear Macon's wrath, since he knew we already done it before. I stared at the ceiling and thought about what Lucian and Anders said last night_. _What if I was turning dark like Lucian said, I finally understood Lena's pain on the night of her sixteenth moon.

I turned around and found her lying on the bed, curled up in a ball like she usually is. Her hair was wild and her face peaceful and I thought about how beautiful she was. Her neck though was bruised from last night. I wanted to just shut out the memories of seeing her helplessly being choked by Lucian. She didn't deserve anything that happened last night, it was all my fault. I finally understood what she felt when she brought me into her world.

_Wake up sleepyhead._

I Kelted at her quietly but loud enough to wake her up. Her eyelids soon fluttered open, her green and gold eyes still drowsy. She looked up at me and smiled.

_What are you doing here? Didn't you have enough last night?_

_ What's wrong with sleeping L._

I wrapped my hands around her and held her close, smelling the lemons and rosemary and running my hands through her signature curls. I savored each sensation especially now since she almost died yesterday. Her touch was comforting after yesterday and I kissed her on her head. She looked up into my eyes and rubbed hers from disbelief.

_Huh so you really are a Caster now, I wasn't just hallucinating._

_ Yeah don't remind me, I'm wanted now because I am one._

I sat up and stretched, almost hitting Lena in the process, she jabbed me playfully and proceeded to kiss me. A small fire started on the floor and was put out almost as soon as it started. Lena stopped and looked up at me with a look of disbelief. It must have been funny for her since I was the one now starting random fires.

_Holy crap! Sorry L._

_ It's okay don't worry, now you know how it feels._

"Have you kids had enough now, Mr. Wate, Lena." Macon was sitting in one of Lena's excessively ornate chairs and seemed to have been waiting for a while now. He was impeccably dressed as normal except his expression was cold and serious. "We must be going Mr. Wate, Lena you can tag along if you wish, we must find your powers and how to control them."

"Please Uncle M. do you think I go anywhere without Ethan now?" She grabbed my hand squeezing it. "You know I can't go an hour without being near him." Macon didn't respond he just left the room and continued downstairs into his study.

_Want to take another shower L? _She giggled and punched my shoulder.

_Fine lets do it before Uncle M. comes back up._

_ "_Uncle M! We're here." I heard Lena shout into the study. She demanded that she came with me no matter how little I could control my powers. I tried to tell her that I might hurt her and I could never live with that. She just smiled and told me how I never left her or how she never she me on fire with spontaneous combustion.

Macon stepped out from the shadows his face composed and calm. "Hello Mr. Wate, Lena. Today Mr. Kent is here again to help us control your powers." He directed a look at both of us. Maybe we'd both be able to control our powers. Anders materialized behind us leaning against the wall as usual. "Pleasure seeing you both again and in one piece Ethan, Lena." He was pale and had a gash across his chest where Lucian slashed him. "I'm terribly sorry for yesterday, I didn't think he could bypass my casts, I almost got you killed Lena."

I swallowed, remembering Lena helplessly lifted in the air, the life draining out from her. The knife almost plunging into her chest. Her beautiful eyes milky and unfocused, I never wanted her to be in that danger ever again. "So Anders what are going to do today?" I asked him curious on how I was going to control my powers.

He smiled and winced from the pain, he was still struggling to do basic functions from yesterday. "We are going to get you to claim yourself." I saw Lena's eyes open wider and saw her happiness.

_You better claim light Ethan._

_ I'm not L. I'm going to be like you and claim both._

_ Please Ethan._

_ I thought I got this through, there is dark and light in everyone._

He closed his eyes and veins started to pop out of his forehead. When he finally opened his eyes they were red like Lucian's. He was out of breath like he just done something too great for even him to handle. "I pulled your nineteenth moon out of time Ethan, go claim yourself. Let Lena be your guide as you were hers she knows more about the pain and experiences of being both light and dark." He willed another chair into existence and sat down in it immediately. "Why are you still standing here? Go outside the claiming will happen in five minutes."

I felt Lena embrace me with her head in my chest. She kissed me and began to drag me to Greenbrier. "This might be the most important moment in your life Ethan. Make sure to do the right thing." She smiled and knew I was going to do the right thing to protect her.

"How does this work? How do I claim? How does it feel?" I had a million of questions about the claiming, mostly how to do it. I was nervous but not afraid, I had Lena to guide me.

"Just think about it and believe that you will be what you want." We had arrived at Greenbrier our special spot. We sat down on the grass, her head resting against my shoulder. I ran my fingers through her curls and leaned in to kiss her. Her eyes were closed and peaceful resting on me, though it quickly ended as Anders ported in.

"Ethan, you can caress Lena later. Your claiming moon is almost here, better get it over with quick, before he arrives or sends something." His eyes were filled with fear, fearing what Lucian would do if he found out. "It is here, make your choice."

I reached for the moon with my right hand, my arm quaking from the raw power that was flowing into me. My eyes forced themselves shut as the strain was too great, I willed them open again and saw golden symbols on my limbs. I felt a rush, neither cold or warm but shocking, as if I was hit by a truck. I kneeled on the ground under the strain of what was happening. I didn't remember Lena's claiming being this painful for her, she just claimed herself and within seconds it was done. The force had brought me on both of my knees now and I could see Lena running towards me to make sure I was okay. Anders looked unsurprised, as if he expected me to be in this much pain.

"Leave him be Duchannes! He must fight the evil himself. The curse will only be expelled this way!" I felt like I was being crushed, like I was going to be flattened and die. I thought about how Lena risked her life getting the _Book of Moons _from Abraham, I couldn't fail her now, not after all she had done to get me here. I stuck both of my arms upwards and felt another jolt of energy run through me, the electricity almost stopping my heart. I got on one knee slowly willing myself up the pressure increasing. The golden symbols burned away and left a singed feeling on my arms. I stood up at last and it was gone, I had survived my claiming.


	8. Chapter 8 - Embrace the Light

**A/N: Nothing again.**

* * *

I opened my eyes to see the most beautiful girl I ever met on top of me, shaking me. I was back at my room at Wate's Landing, I had no idea how I got here, in fact I had no idea what happened after I claimed myself. Lena smiled and kissed me passionately, her lips were soft and warm, her hair smelling like lemons and rosemary. "Don't you ever scare me like that again Ethan Lawson Wate." She rested her head in my chest and looked me in the eyes.

"What do you mean L? What happened after the claiming?"

_Nothing you just fainted from exhaustion_

_ Is there something that your not telling me?_

_ No. Really you just fainted._

I got off the bed pushing Lena off me gently and headed for my bathroom. As I approached the mirror I noticed that I had gotten what I wanted. My left eye was the same electric green that Lena's was the first day we met. My right eye was the same fiery gold hers was the day at the lake. I had done it, I had claimed myself both Light and Dark.

I saw her approaching me through the mirror. "You like the new eyes? I don't feel as alone now." I saw her smile, wrapping her hands around my stomach. I turned around and saw her neck, it was still bruised. I brushed my hand over it gently, she shivered as I saw the pain she was in just touching them. My hands hovered over them and I thought about her without this painful purple spot, I opened my eyes and they were gone. I saw her stare at me in amazement, I didn't even know what I just did.

_Ethan. What are you?_

_ I don't know L. What I do know is that I'm your boyfriend and I love you deeply._

I lowered my head and kissed her until our lips were raw. I thought about how much the claiming would affect the prophecy that Lucian stated, how I was going to turn dark and join his ranks. I shuddered at the thought and continued to hold Lena in a tight embrace. I brought her to my bed and lowered her down. She laughed and brought me down on the bed as well. I sat up and looked at her eyes. They were glowing, just like they always do when she's happy.

I thought we were truly alone when I heard Anders' voice behind us. "Evening Mr. Wate, Lena." His breathing wasn't labored anymore and his voice was as strong as it was the first day I met him. "I trust that you're enjoying your time with the Duchannes here but we must be going. The rest of your friends mortal, caster and hybrid are all waiting for you two, they haven't even found out about your eyes Ethan nor our little run-in with Lucian Ravenwood."

I sighed at the though that we'd have to explain everything to them, how I got my powers through Lena.

_Well, we'll have to face them eventually Ethan, might as well do it now._ I could tell that she didn't want to tell anyone what happened on her birthday more than anyone else.

"Fine lets go." I said reluctantly. I tried to not think about what Link would say. I held Lena's hand until we got to the Volvo. She sat in the passenger seat while Anders just walked there. I sat back and began to drive, sighing upon realizing on how awkward it would be to explain what happened.

When we got to Ravenwood, the house looked different again. The roof wasn't slanted and the entire manor was completely restored, even on the outside. There were no vines growing up the walls and the windows were all clear. I could tell Lena was also surprised by the way she jerked her head back. "How, how did it get this beautiful." It was more of a statement than a question but I answered anyway.

"Could it be that my power is helping it now?" I grabbed Lena's hand and guided her to the trapdoor beneath the rug. It opened to my touch and soon we were descending for Macon's study again. This time he wasn't the only one there. I saw Liv at the desk trying to figure out why the _Book of the Suns_ was here, Link was busy trying to hit on Ridley and John was busy looking over Liv's shoulder. They all seemed to notice when I stepped into the room though as immediately all eyes were on me.

The room got silent almost immediately. Everyone was staring at my eyes. The first one to speak was John. "What the hell happened to your eyes." He raised an eyebrow out of interest and quickly turned to Liv, as if she had an idea what happened to me.

_Should I tell them L?_

_ Better now than never._

_ I'll never hear the end of this from Link._

I told them about Lena's birthday, how Lucian showed up uninvited, how there was another race called Celestials, how Anders was a friend and not a foe and how I claimed myself. I left out the part where Lena and I had sex but I knew that they would figure it out eventually. I also left out the part where I had Lena's powers as a natural but had other Caster powers such as Ryan's powers as a thaumaturge. I also told them about the recent Shadowing Songs about the Prince of Hell and whatnot.

"Interesting to say the least but why do you suppose that Lucian didn't just take Ethan the night of Lena's birthday?" Liv questioned

"He likes to play with his food, Durand." Anders seemed to walk through another wall. "It's nice to finally make your acquaintances, Mr. Breed" He shot a death stare at John who just lifted his hands in defense. "Mr. Lincoln." He gave Link a smile and turned to meet Ridley "Miss Duchannes." He didn't bother looking at Ridley and proceeded to us again. "I told you I would get here eventually didn't I, Ethan?" He grasped my shoulder and flinched as if my touch had paralyzed him. He stepped back and quickly inspected his hand. "Amazing, so much power within you, traces of many Caster powers." He then touched Lena's hand and recoiled just as fast as he did with me. "Interesting, you have gained power as well Lena. Could it be your bond with Ethan?"

I looked at Lena and ran my hand through her hair like I always did. I heard Liv's voice rise out. I looked in her direction, Link and Ridley were gone, I rolled my eyes and looked at Lena again. This time her eyes met mine and we both stared into each other for a while. She cracked a smile and I gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, where her crescent shaped birthmark was. She rested her head on my shoulder and I ran my fingers through her hair.

I heard a deafening blast, I ran towards the explosion and found Link unconscious right next to Lucian, his eyes full of hatred and spite, his hair glowing to seem more than ashen white. His hands gripped around a cruel blade that almost plunged into Lena. He wasn't adorned in his robes anymore. He was clad in full armor, black as hell itself. His chest plate adorned with the remains of ancient beasts. He wore a cape that was crimson red. His fingers were adorned with many bands of blackened metal that held radiant crystals hot and fiery like the sun.

I saw Ridley in the corner scared for her life, a first for her. Lucian finally noticed me and smiled wickedly, he looked like he could tear me limb from limb, which he could probably do. Lena came into view from the corner of my eyes, John and Liv were following and I saw her face whiten.

She wrapped her arms around my waist and stood behind me as if she was trying to hide herself from the devil himself. Lucian let out a roar that sent Link's body flying backwards. I got a better look at him, he wasn't badly damaged but he was still unconscious.

Lucian turned again to meet Lena's eyes. She jerked back as if his gaze hurt her. "It's nice to see you again, girl. You have been quite the inconvenience, I thought that you learned your lesson from last night." I squeezed my hand around hers protectively. Lucian laughed and quickly materialized behind me. "Foolish girl you will get killed if you interfere again." He threw Lena back into the study sending her flying into Liv and John. He soon casted the door shut.

"Lena!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

_I'm okay Ethan, he just wanted to get rid of me._

My body was filling with anger that I had never experienced before. A burning sensation was coursing through my body, my eyes filled with hatred and contempt, my limbs were fueled by my personal crusade against this man before me. I wanted to kill him but I knew I couldn't, I wasn't strong enough, I was beneath him. He smacked me with a flick of his wrist and I went spiraling into the wall.

_Ethan!_

He approached me and I felt his grip around my neck, this time I was the one who was going to die. He squeezed it, his grip unrelenting but not strong enough to snap it. I felt the life drain from me. My eyes were becoming unfocused and blurry, I was seeing spots and I thought it was all going to end here. The burning rage never stopped as I let out a final cry. I sent Lucian back although he quickly regained his balance and stopped in front of the corner where Ridley was a few seconds ago. He charged at me this time he held his blade out. He was trying to kill me, but why? I thought he needed me. I felt more anger let out from me. I was sending bolts of lightning at him, his flesh was being singed but quickly repairing itself as if he had superhuman regenerative properties.

_Ethan stop you're hurting me. Your anger, it's burning me._ I could feel the urgency in her voice and I calmed down. I had a new source of fuel. I was going to protect her at any cost.

I dodged the first swipe of his dagger, it barely missed my neck. I retaliated with a blast of wind at him sending him back once more. He stood up again momentarily dazed, surprised at what I had just done. I picked up the stones on the floor of the tunnel and hurled them telepathically at him. He dodged them all with an agility I thought was impossible. He materialized in front of me and grabbed my neck again. This time I didn't feel just my life draining I felt my power draining as if he was somehow stopping my casting.

I heard sinister words from his mouth. "This is your last chance Wayward, this will be the last chance you have to join me. If you refuse I will crush your pitiful neck and drop your body in front of your girlfriend." I saw something in his eyes, it was beyond hate, beyond rage something more malevolent and evil than both combined. His teeth were clenched, blood was flowing freely from under his eye making him look more evil than he normally was.

I tried to free myself from his grasp but to no avail. I felt my life ending. I was going to be dead for the third time. I think it was the third time at least. I thought about how I was never going to see Lena again, how I was never going to kiss her or touch her again. I thought about all that she had sacrificed to be with me, her sixteenth birthday, her seventeenth moon, finding the _Book of Moons _and killing Abraham. I thought of all the close moments I almost lost her, and how much pain I was in. I thought back to the Halloween before her sixteenth birthday, her running off with John, her crying herself to sleep hysterically before I jumped, but most of all I though about how overjoyed she was to see me back. I couldn't leave her like this. I had to fight back.

In the moments just before all my body would shut down from lack of oxygen I fought back. My body radiated with light and sent Lucian flying backwards again. This time he didn't get up immediately and I saw why, his own sword was impaled into his knee. He was soaked with blood and let out a cry that would scare every incubus or demon. He raised his head and looked at me with the same blood boiling hatred as before. I was gasping for air and I was inhaling it greedily. I saw him trying to walk over to finish me but I didn't have any of it. I concentrated hard and though of everyone I had already lost probably because of what this man had set in motion. I set him ablaze with the whitest flames I ever saw, I sent lightning bolts that seemed more like rays of light hurling towards him. His eyes showed something different this time. Fear.

He tried to run away but I pinned him down with ashen ice. His legs were some shade of dark red, his chest plate dented beyond repair. "Just what the hell are you? How can you control light itself?" He panted heavily after yelling the words and quickly chains materialized out of nowhere and bound him to the wall. The chains were the color of white gold and shone brilliantly. He yelled again with the same bloodcurdling scream.

"I am Ethan Lawson Wate, I've lived in Gatlin my whole life. I am the only child of Mitchell Wate and Lila Jane Evers Wate. I am the boyfriend of Lena Duchannes, one of the most powerful Casters in the world. That is who I am Lucian. But who are you?" I put my hand on his head and tried to absorb his thoughts, I was sent to the ground falling on my back.

"Why are you doing this to Lena and I. What have we ever done to you? I know you need me but leave her out of this." I was panting heavily and felt like I was about to fall. I caught myself on a wall and leaned against it almost falling down.

"You know nothing about me. Nothing about my past, nothing about my choices, nothing about my pain. You don't know my destiny was never for myself to decide, you don't know my master is a cruel, vicious, malevolent man. Do not be so rash in your decisions to label me as a cold blooded killer. I never had choices and I never will, I am his servant and I will always be. I will carry out his orders even if it kills me because I have to." He sneered and I decided I had enough. I felt my energy pile and I concentrated all my power on him. A white light shot down from the sky and seemed to smite him. One of his black bands dropped on the ground. "This is not over Wate. This is only a fraction of my power. I'll be back for you, don't you worry. I can't let you pass now." The light dissipated and the chains fell to the ground. I grabbed the ring and pocketed it. The tunnel was a mess of holes and dents where we had fought. The door to Macon's study was still intact and perfect. There was noting to worry about for a few days now. I walked back to the study wondering what would be waiting for me.

I tried to open the door but it wouldn't budge. I tried to punch a hole in it but only succeeded to bruise my knuckles. I had to make sure that they were okay. Lena, the last time I heard her, was badly hurt and I needed to help her no matter what. I tried to open it one last time, the door didn't even budge, I tried to do the simple open cast that Lena taught me, nothing happened. I felt something else take control of my body, I chanted, words I never knew, words I would never know, words that didn't belong in my vocabulary. Suddenly the door blasted open and I saw a frightened Lena cower from the explosion. Link was still unconscious, Ridley somehow made it into here and Liv and John were busy trying to help Link. Lena ran to me and circled her skinny legs around my waist. She was still hurt I felt her pain but I knew she didn't care at the moment. I kissed her on the lips until they were raw. I pushed her away and tried to calm her down.

She slapped me and I was confused on what I had done. "Why didn't you answer any of my Kelts? I was worried that you were dead the entire time. I thought that Lucian was the one who blasted the door open." I didn't hear her Kelts after I promised I would do anything to protect her. She backed away from me and started to cry. I didn't want to see her cry anymore.

"I didn't hear anything past the part where you said that my anger was hurting you." I was answering truthfully and she seemed to understand it. "I was consumed in battle and I was only thinking of one thing, protecting you." I stood up and walked to her again and held her in my arms. She sobbed into my chest and I caressed her hair. She smelled like lemons and rosemary, the same scent from the day before I met her. I rubbed my hands on her back and she seemed to calm down. I kissed her forehead and brought her close again for another hug.

_Can you hear me now Ethan?_

_ Crystal clear L._

_ Good, promise me that you will let me stay with you tonight._

_ I promise._

_ Promise you'll never leave me Ethan._

_ I promise. Just let me take care of your wounds, please._

I laid her down and used my thaumaturge powers to heal her. The bruises on her neck were completely gone and the burns I gave her quickly disappeared. "Ethan, I know that you love Lena and all but I believe that Link is in a more dire situation." Liv was speaking to me and Ridley was still trying to wake Link up. I put my hand over his neck where the same hand shaped bruise was. I concentrated hard for a good hour before he finally waked up.

"Jesus what the hell happened. All I remember was making out with Ridley and then a hand choking me." He sat up startled and looked around, noticing our sighs of relief. "Anyone going to tell me?"

I was debating whether to tell him or not but I decided against it. I was way too tired to deal with anything right now. "Not now man. I'm sacked out." I held Lena's hand and led her up the stairs again and out the door of Ravenwood Manor and into the old Volvo.

It was already night time. I had missed dinner but dad would have just figured that I was at Lena's. I looked at her again her eyes filled with love and passion. I wonder what mine said. Confusion, love, anger or fear.

By the time I got back to Wate's Landing everyone was already asleep. I gently opened the front door and led Lena indoors. My aunts were still living with us and they woke up from the slightest sound. I carried her in my arms and she smiled at me again.

Luckily no floorboards creaked as I walked up and I laid her down in my bed. I walked over to the other side and got in with her. She just smiled and laid her head in my chest and quickly fell asleep. I looked at her for a few minutes. She was so beautiful. I slowly drifted off to sleep and for once couldn't wait for the school day tomorrow. For once there won't be an evil Celestial trying to murder us. Just the normal Jackson social parade for Lena. Nothing would be different, everything would be normal for at least one day.

She was still sleeping soundly when I heard the song again. This time in my dreams. I bolted awake and she did too. I rubbed her back and held her closer, We both kept on sleeping through the song, willing to decipher it tomorrow. Nothing mattered right now. She was right beside me, she would be safe right now. I had nothing to worry about.

_Nineteen moons, nineteen tears,_

_The inner light of one appears._

_Light will fade and dark will rise_

_Two will face the final price._


	9. Chapter 9 - Insanity

**A/N: No explicit material. Minor violence I guess.**

* * *

I was dying, coughing up blood. Lena was right next to me, her expression of pure horror. She was crying, I couldn't let this happen. I let loose a scream and fell on my back. I was engulfed in a blinding white light on my left side and a creeping darkness on my right. The light and dark were mixing. Lena tried to move but couldn't. She was trapped in a cast. Lucian appeared once again, he was adorned in his robes, he held out his hand to help me get up, to help me ease the pain, to help me join him. Lena held hers out, she couldn't help me up or ease the pain, but I wanted to grab hers. Anders was there too, holding his hand, he offered power, the power to protect Lena. The pain was immense I almost wanted to grab Lucian's and my love for Lena almost made me grab Anders'. As I grabbed Lena the light took over my body. The searing darkness went away and I was left with white robes, the same as Lucian and Anders, my eyes were purple and Lena's were just green. Then I was impaled by shards of light. My eyes became white, my hair blonde and my skin a tan color. I became the light itself. I saw someone else, another girl, being overwhelmed with the darkness, transforming into the opposite of me, the essence of darkness.

I woke up with a jolt and I saw Lena still sleeping next to me. I nudged her lightly, seeing if she would wake up. She woke up slowly, her eyelids fluttering to life slowly. Her eyes looked right at me and she smiled. I brought her closer and let her bury her head into my chest. She looked so happy, I wanted her to be like this for forever. I would do anything to keep her like this and even more for me to be there too.

_Good morning beautiful. _I Kelted softly as I lifted her head to kiss her. My lips found hers and we sat there in pure bliss for what felt like hours. In reality it was actually only 10 seconds but it felt so much longer and so good. I was still in my shirt and jeans from two days ago and I thought about how bad I smelled. I got up and started the shower, Lena was right behind me as always. It seemed like we spent more and more time together and never left each other now.

_You know L, we don't always have to take showers together._

_ You're no fun._ She stood there smiling for a while and left a little bit after I hopped into the shower. I thought about the song and dream from last night. I'm pretty sure I knew who were the two that will face the final price. What I didn't understand was the light overtaking my body. Maybe it had already done that and that was how I lived through the encounter with Lucian. I mostly thought about the other girl, how could that happen to her, what if she represented what Lena would turn into if I chose Light. I finally felt what Lena felt when she had to claim either light or dark. This time there was no darkness in light and no light in darkness.

_Don't think about that Ethan, not today, I just want to have one normal day. _I turned off the water and stepped out to dry myself off. Lena hopped in this time and I was left alone to ponder about last night for a few moments. Nothing made sense, If darkness was going to prevail then why was I choosing Light? I decided against thinking about it and got dressed. I wore my Harley-Davidson T-shirt and my faded jeans. I looked at the bathroom mirror, Lena just finished and was getting dressed.

"You ready L? We can stop at the Shop and Steal for some doughnuts." As I was saying the words I looked at the ring that fell off of the finger of Lucian. The black metal looked evil and the red gem looked bloodthirsty. I don't know what drove me to do it but I put it on. Lena was walking back in, watching me put it on. "Ethan what are you doing with _that_?" As I put it on I watched as the darkness faded away, the blackened metal was replaced by a shining silver, the gem was replaced by a sparkling diamond, the clearest I've ever seen.

Her eyes opened and she quickly grabbed my hand momentarily dazed. I eyed the ring, I noticed a distinct silver pattern on my hand, the same shape and size as Anders'. I flips my other hand over noticing the same dark tattoo that Lena has on her hand. I took off the ring, it retained the same brilliance and brightness that it had when I put it on. I held it out for Lena. "Here you try L." She reluctantly grabbed the ring and the room began to swirl.

* * *

_Lucian Ravenwood was kneeling on a stone. His hair was jet black, his eyes black and glassy like Abraham's were. He was wearing a leather jacket covering a shirt and blue jeans that were faded. The stone he was on had the symbol of a dark caster on itself. The stone on the other side had the silvery symbol of light. Between the two stones was the Book of Moons, dark and sinister as always. Lucian wasn't supposed to be down here, his father would kill him if he saw him here, he didn't allow anyone or anything down here in his crypt that he called a study._

_ "Already down here so soon Lucian?" A voice came from behind, a girl's. She had straight black hair tied back into a ponytail, her eyes were amethyst, she was very beautiful. She had on a white tank top with black jeans underneath. An air of power was surrounding her, her hair was always moving behind her, it was almost as if she had too much power. "I'd expect you to take your time, especially after what you did for us recently."_

_ "Claire. You know I'd do anything for you, Abraham wouldn't allow this to happen though. Thats why I'm becoming a Celestial, for you. Don't you know? Incubi and Celestials can never be together." He got the words out barely before Claire quickly put her hand over his mouth. His lips burned like a thousand suns but he enjoyed the sensation._

_ "Don't you dare say that Lucian, I don't want you to change at all. Nothing would be the same if you became one of us. It's not natural." She quickly reacted as Lucian walked towards the book. "Lucian! Listen to me! If you do this you can change forever, you won't be the same light hearted incubus as before. You can become evil, something that will hurt all of us, including myself."_

_ He ignored her statement and proceeded to the book. The raw power ripped through the air and the book found the page he was looking for. Claire quickly turned him around and kissed him passionately, his lips were shot with electricity, but the pleasure was too much to give up. He had to do this, he'd do anything for her._

_ "Please Lucian." She started to sob in his chest, he caressed her while she cried and quickly started to chant the words, the words that would change his life forever. For good or for the worse he would never know. It was a chance he was willing to take. "Claire, if I don't make it out of this I want you to have this to remember me by." He took off his necklace, it was a chain that had a twisting design on the end. "I never told you this but that is the symbol of light. I never wanted to be dark I always wanted to be light. Thats why I went through all those trials to become the first light incubus." She sobbed harder into his chest and lifted her head up to meet his gaze once more._

_ "Then Lucian take my ring, take it to remember me. Take it to remember the love we have and will always have for each other." She took of the ring, it was a band of pure white imbued with diamonds and rubies, a ring of power. "It is a reminder that I am a Celestial, a reminder why we will never be together." Lucian kissed her once more and pushed her away softly._

_ He stood in the center and began to say the words of the cast. The wind picked up within the chamber and the structures began to crumble. At the end of the cast he saw the light he had being sucked out of him. Claire was mortified at what was happening. His essence was being sucked away and being replaced by something more vibrant. He brought his knees on the floor and his body groaned under it's own weight. He looked at Claire, his face was ashen white, his hair was silver and his eyes were most importantly purple._

_ He felt a pain too great in his chest, he whipped around and found his father, Abraham with his arm in his chest. Lucian thought he was going to die, after all he'd done with Claire this had crossed the line with his father._

_ "Boy! What do you think you're doing? You disgrace our kind, sacrificing your incubus blood to become a Caster." He spat out the last word like it was poison. "You will learn a lesson from this boy." He dug deeper into his chest and ripped his heart out. Blood was pouring everywhere, yet it wasn't since the trait of hyper regeneration that he possessed was coming in handy. With his heart went the essence of light from him. The ring that he got from Claire was transforming on his finger. It was blackening, the crystals in the middle all losing their virtue, losing their light._

_ Claire fainted as she saw her love becoming what she worried would happen. He was being turned to dark by the evil of Abraham Ravenwood. His hand was filled with a swirling pattern to mark the darkness that was within, the old silver pattern was erased completely and the bright silver of his hair was turned into a dull grey. His light essence was trapped in something, something that he would never find until it was too late._

_ Claire's father rifted into focus, he was a Caster-Incubus hybrid that could travel. His electric green eyes stared into Lucian with horror at what he just done and what had just happened to him. He looked back down at Claire and let out a sigh of relief when he realized nothing had happened to her. He looked up at Lucian again and decided it was best that he and Claire part._

_ "Lucian, I know I gave you consent to marry my daughter but after these recent events... I believe it would be better until you are whole again. You and my daughter are immortal, you two can find a way definitely. Until then this old hybrid won't get to see the joys of his daughter, please Lucian, find your light." He carried Claire in both of his arms and rifted away once again. He could go outside into the sun due to the fact he had Caster blood within him._

_ Claire was gone and with her was Lucian's heart. From that day he made a vow, he would do anything and everything for her, the girl he loved, the girl he chose to marry. He would find his Light or take someone else's. Nothing could stop him now the power of the worlds flowed through his limbs._

_ "Just wait for me Claire, I promise that I will return. I won't leave you crying anymore." He fell to the ground beneath Abraham, on all fours. The old incubus sneered and left the crypt with Lucian's heart. He had lost everybody and everything precious to him in the exchange. He lost Claire, his father's trust and his Light. Nothing could be worse._

_He turned to me and smiled a broken smile._

_ "Sometimes Ethan, a broken promise is better than one completed."_

_ He turned to Lena._

_ "Sometimes Lena, heartbreak is worth the reward."_

* * *

The room came back into focus, I could still smell the must and rot that was in that old crypt. I looked at the ring, the metal was still the brightest white I've ever seen but it stopped glowing. The diamond in the middle was still clear as day but not shimmering. It must have been Claire's ring, transformed by Lucian's vindictive passion against life. My love for Lena must have sparked it again.

I looked at Lena, her eyes were haunted by the vision, I held her hand with mine and squeezed it lightly, her skin was cold as ice. She looked up at me with her gold and green eyes with fear.

"You're it aren't you? You're his Light." She shuddered at the thought that Lucian would stop at nothing to get me for that reason. "He doesn't want to conquer the Era, he wants to have the love of his life back."

I heard a distinct sound at the edge of my bed, Anders was there waiting for me, his purple eyes filled with the same strength the first day we met. "You're right on the second account, but wrong on the first. Ethan doesn't have Lucian's Light, just an abnormally strong one. He recognized that, so does his master, the only reason he's on this crusade for you, Ethan is that his Light is held by his master. You can conquer the Era for him but for Lucian you represent freedom not conquest." Lena looked up at me with a happier expression.

"If what you say is true Anders, the can't we just kill the master and give Lucian his Light?" Lena looked at me like I was crazy for even suggesting the idea and Anders let out a huge sigh.

"No. That would be impossible. His master has the light bound within him, he has to do a ritual willingly for Lucian to receive any reward, in fact killing him would probably send him spiraling to insanity." He looked at my clock and frowned. "You two should go to school." With that he ripped out of the room.

_Ethan..._

_ Don't worry L, we'll find a way to free him so he can stop hunting us._

_ You better, I expect you to now._

I held her face in my hands and kissed her on the lips passionately. She wrapped her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck. We kissed until our lips were raw and our bodies sweaty from being so close to each other, now that we were both Casters there were even more fires that randomly appeared. We went downstairs and into the old Volvo, she got into the passenger seat as normal and I drove.

"L? Do you believe that people can change?" I said when was usually the awkward silence began.

She looked at me like I was crazy again. "Of course I do, I changed from being a loner to the girlfriend of the most handsome boy in Gatlin."

I chucked a little bit at the thought and quickly became serious. "I don't mean that type of change. Do you think that Lucian doesn't care for Claire anymore?"

"No. He definitely still loves her. If he didn't he could live his life as a Celestial happily ever after, but he's trying to get the light back just so he can be with her."

By the time I arrived at the school parking lot everyone was there, first period started in fifteen minutes and we had barely arrived for it. At least we both had English together first. We both walked down the dull halls of Jackson to Ms. English's room where everyone was sitting there talking like usual before class started. Emily and Savannah were both texting as usual and Link was busy flexing his muscles for the guys. I sat right next to Lena, the same way I have been for so long now. Not before long class started. Ms. English announced that the next play that we would read would be _Romeo and Juliet_. Everybody in the room groaned except for Lena and I, as we both read it before.

After the lecture on why we are reading the play, we walked out of the class. As I walked down the halls, people stared at my eyes and my hands. I ignored them and turned to Lena, showing them that I was no longer one of them, I belonged with her. We both had History with Mr. Lee again. This would be the fourth year I took US History with him and it was getting even more boring than usual.

We both sat down in our usual seats and listened to the lecture for twenty minutes before the door blasted open, so much for a normal day. Mr. Lee was in the corner with his hands over his face pretending that it was going to help him survive. The class screamed and ended in chaos. Emily and Savannah made a fit about it as usual but this time they were right. Lucian stood there in the doorway fully recovered. He was wearing his robes again and was missing one ring from his finger. His rage was evident and his eyes were blazing with hate. He pointed a finger at me and began to walk to me.

"You!" He was yelling at the top of his lungs, I heard the pain and anger in his voice. "You have something that belongs to me Wate!" I looked down at Lena's hand, she was wearing Lucian's ring. He followed my eyes and quickly looked at Lena, his eyes seemed to bulge out and his features all sharpened from hate. In a second he was behind her, driving his fist into her back, breaking the desk, chair and flattening her into the ground. "How dare you wear the ring of my beloved Claire." His eyes were full of something beyond hate and anger.

_Lena! Are you okay!_

_ No...I'm sorry Ethan...I'm going to survive don't worry, it just hurts like hell._

At this point he let out a roar, the desks and chairs were sent flying to the walls of the room, impaling them or shattering upon impact. The entire class, except for Lena, were huddling in the corner. I understood what this was, a rematch. I lifted Lena up from the wrong, her hair was a mess and her tank top and jeans were bloody and stained, if Macon ever saw this he would murder me. She looked so weak and broken, I dropped her in the corner with the rest of the class and kissed her. I left a caging cast on the group.

I looked back at her hand, the rings I gave her were still intact. I took off Claire's ring and put it on my finger. Lucian's face immediately soured and he lunged at me directly after. My neck was the target again. This time I sent blinding rays of light at him, he seemed momentarily startled at what I was doing. The rays of light pierced his robe and his flesh, leaving strange holes where the rays passed through. He ripped behind me and sent a shockwave through my body pushing me into the ground, just like Lena. He grabbed the front on my neck and slammed me into the ground, his eyes were wild. I lit him ablaze again with the same pure white fire as before. He clenched his fist and began to fade, he was running for the battle.

"Oh no you're not you prick!" The searing chains reappeared again on his body, this time they glowed hot from the flames. He was bound in place this time, he was wounded by the light, the robe had somehow recovered. He struggled and tried to do something but failed. I walked over to Lena and ran my hand across her, the wounds she received were washed away, the crimson liquid covering her clothes was also cleared. Her eyes fluttered open again and I kissed her heavily again.

_Ethan, I don't know what to say._

_ Nothing, you resurrected me twice, It's only fair that I repay you._

"We even have a visitor L." She looked at the wall where Lucian was with disbelief and then turned back to me. Her eyes said it all, how. I just smiled and undid the cast I put on her. We walked over to Lucian who gave up on moving in the chains altogether. He lifted his head in defeat and frowned when he saw Lena.

"Here for your revenge you little bitch? Or just here to mock me more with him nearby?" Lena sent a lightning bolt at him, though it didn't scratch him, he seemed to be crying. "I'll take that as revenge." He lowered his head again and I forcefully held it up. "What do you want? You stopped me, kill me." The word on his cheek changed, it said despair now. "Well, finish me. Before I attack your little girlfriend again." Lena still stood back as if he could easily incapacitate her in his current position.

"No." I said the one word with confidence, Lena looked at me horrified.

He raised an eyebrow "Why not Wate? Playing with your food?"

"You weren't always evil. You had a heart, had love, had a life." His head immediately straightened and his eyes dulled. The simple statement seemed to intimidate him even more than death.

"That was over a century ago. People change Ethan. So do destinies. So does Light."

"People can change but not like that."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that we can help you, help you regain your Light."

He looked surprised "How. You barely even found yours. How can I even trust you, how can you even trust me?"

"You can't. You'll just have to try and see." I smiled and undid the chains. He stood up proudly, and started to cry. This was the first time I saw another emotion besides hate, I don't think he ever experienced mercy. I put my hand on his shoulder and held out my hand. Claire's ring was in my palm and I was offering to return it to him, the rightful owner. When he saw the ring, all of his emotions went away. "Keep it Wate, I'll think about your offer. My situation is more complex than you believe, it's not just that my Light is trapped. Just leave me be, I'm just doing what I need to do."

With that he faded, not taking the ring, leaving the entire class in disarray. I thought about the shadowing song, the inner light of one appears. I think we found who's the one. I ran my hands over the school walls and they somehow fixed themselves. I looked over at Lena who was standing at the same place she was the entire time. I leaned over and kissed her again. Sending off random fires everywhere, one appeared on Emily's purse. I pulled her in close and smelled the lemon and rosemary that had and will always be there.

_Are you insane Ethan? You were offered the chance to kill him and you didn't?_

_ You said it yourself L. People can change. _

_ Ethan..._

I looked over at the other members of our class, they were still shocked and most of them rubbing their eyes in disbelief. I knew we had a lot of explaining to do. It didn't matter, maybe they'd finally understand Lena's plight. I doubt it though.

_ Don't worry L. Nothing will happen as long as I'm here beside you._


	10. Chapter 10 - Essence of Might

They were all starting at us, probably deciding whether to run or trust us. Emily was the first to speak, as always. She asked us what the hell we were and we answered in unison, something complicated. By now we'd probably be on the front page of every newspaper in town and the hot talk of the school for months. I guess we could be saviors but I'm guessing more likely freaks. Anyway, school was over due to an investigation to determine how the man bypassed the security system. It would probably be weeks before Jackson opened again, in that time I'll gladly enjoy spending time with Lena.

Lena and I were overjoyed, we'd have the rest of the day to ourselves, we could do anything we want. I sat in the driver seat of the Volvo, Lena got in the passenger seat. We drove to our special spot at Greenbrier, I carried her the entire way and laid her down on the hearthstone. Her eyes were gleaming again a sign that she was happy. I laid down next to her and brought her close. I buried my face in her hair and she buried hers into my chest.

She pushed herself away from my chest and looked me in the eyes. She reached up to grab my face and kissed me. I returned the kiss and our mouths started to open, letting our tongues dance in each other's mouth. I left her lips and went down to her neck, her collarbone and chest. Her skin was warm and soft like her lips. I wanted her again but not now, not when Macon could easily see us from a window. I reluctantly pushed myself away from her, her eyes clouded with disappointment momentarily. She pushed me to the ground and got on top of me, letting her hair tickle. I kissed her one last time and gently pushed her off. Her eyes clouding again with another wave of disappointment.

_Lena, not now, not when your uncle can see us from a window._ I brushed her hair back carefully and stared at her eyes again, this time there was want and lust in them. I looked down at her hands, the swirling black pattern was still there, a reminder she would always be both light and dark, mine was dimming as the light was taking over. I put Lucian's ring on her finger, the metal immediately dulled and the gem clouded. I looked at her eyes again curiously. I took it from her and put it on mine again, the metal became radiant and the gem perfect.

_Ethan, What are you?_

_ Your boyfriend and lover. _Her face was masked over with annoyance, as if the ring was too good for her. I looked into her eyes again, the Caster green one was the same as always, the fiery gold one seemed to be more hazel than gold. I quickly looked down at her hand again, the swirling pattern of a dark caster was even dimmer. I must have seemed shocked since Lena quickly picked up my astonishment.

_What's wrong Ethan?_

_ Your eyes. One is green and one is hazel not gold._

_ Maybe the ring is a catalyst for transferring light._

_ Maybe._ I held her in my hands again and we just sat there just enjoying each other's company. I ran my fingers through her hair repeatedly, enjoying the scent of the lemons and rosemary. She seemed to be perfectly happy just resting her head on my shoulder, I wish I could see her like this for the rest of her life. I put the ring on her again, the dark tattoo dimmed again, almost disappearing, her eyes was more a green-yellow. This time the ring retained its brilliant hue as Lena wore it. She simply smiled as she watched the ring accept her light. I kissed her on her crescent shaped birthmark and held her hand with mine. The scenery began to swirl and I knew what was going to happen, I turned to Lena and asked her a question that I already knew the answer to.

"Ready L?"

"As I'll ever be."

_Lucian was wearing the same clothes as he was the day he turned into the monster he was today. He was in his rented apartment that was shabby and neglected, the only place he could afford. He didn't have many things with him, most of them were from his memories with Claire. Her father watched her like a hawk, disallowing her to meet with him until he found his Light again. He wasn't hungry or thirsty, kitchen made sure of that. He was damaged beyond repair at the thought that everything that he ever worked for in his life was gone, his love, his Light and his life itself._

_ The only thing he had that Claire gave to him was the ring. Every day it seemed as if the ring blackened and grew more dull. He couldn't give it up, it was the only thing he had left that was hers. Every day he was losing his hope, and his memories, sometimes he forgot his own name. He was caving in to the evil and the darkness that was now in him. Abraham would be proud now, if he still was an incubus. He had urges to destroy rather than create, he loved crimson red when his favorite color was once blue. He had to find his Light quickly or else the dark would consume him fully._

_ Lucian got up and walked outside. He was living in Charleston, he needed to go to visit Claire, she would surely be able to help him. Before he even got to step into the tunnels, a hand grasped his shoulder. A tall man with black hair as dark as tar stood behind him. His eyes were the same amethyst that Claire's were, his body was covered with a leather overcoat that was open to show off his build. His hands were both tattooed. Lucian recognized the one on his right, the symbol of Light, it shone brilliantly, the silvery design glowed like the sun. The one on the left was dark, with no light radiating from it, the black seemed to be pulling Light in and trapping it like a black hole. His chest had a design on it, one that Lucian swore he saw somewhere before but couldn't remember._

_ "Are you sure you want to do this boy? You know her father won't allow it." The man said coldly. "She is beyond you now, she is both Light and Dark, you're just Dark." Lucian swore he saw the symbol on his chest change. Lucian quickly batted the hand away from his shoulder and turned to meet the man face to face._

_ "Who are you and what do you want from me?" Lucian quickly prepared himself for a fight if he needed to. The man shook his head and shot a bolt of power at Lucian. He smiled and held his hand out to help him get up._

_ "I am Dan Marc, the most powerful Celestial in the world and I can help you find your Light."_

The scene faded away and we were left again at Greenbrier, Lena was still leaning on my shoulder, her skin was cold again. I held her closer letting my warmth seep into her. She smiled and nestled into my chest.

_Ethan. He lost himself like my mother. _Her voice was quiet when she said her mother but I heard it like she was shouting. I kissed her forehead and let her worries slip away. I ran my fingers through her hair again and she played around with my shirt. I know I couldn't escape Lucian's looming darkness, but a part of me believed when he saw the ring in its former glory he couldn't bring himself to harm anything.

_Don't worry L. Everything will be okay. _I got up from the ground and held my hand out to help her get up. Her eyes seemed to be both green now and the dark swirling pattern was completely gone from her hand. I smiled and led her back to Ravenwood. The house hasn't changed, it was still the same happy and light expression that Lena was always in now. Macon was sitting on one of the overstuffed couches reading something I couldn't make out. He simply looked in my direction and smiled.

"Good Afternoon Mr. Wate." He returned to his book, seeming deeply indulged in it.

We walked up the grand spiral staircase that dominated the house, until we stopped at Lena's room. The room was the same as always, there were words everywhere, with mine still there. Lena sat on the bed with her arms wide open, inviting me to join her. I accepted and laid on the bed next to her, her eyes were wild with lust and love.

_I want you Ethan Wate. More than you can imagine. _She momentarily got up and made her viola play some Mozart. She returned to the bed smiling even more than usual.

I kissed her passionately and she immediately circled her legs around me. She turned me on my back and laid on top letting her hair tickle again and returning the kiss with more fiery passion. Her hands were moving up and down my back, her lips were burning with love. I turned her onto her back and removed myself from her lips. I kissed her sensitive neck, and moved down to her collarbone, she moaned softly and let me continue the chain of fire.

Her hair was wild and her eyes glowing, she looked more beautiful than ever. I took off her tank top leaving her there in her jeans and bra. I started at her stomach and made my way up until I was under her bra. She didn't object and let me do what I wanted. I leaned down to kiss her again while fondling her breasts. She moaned softly and smiled at me again. Her skin was getting hotter like last time, luckily no random fires were set. She turned me over, laying on top of me again. She took off my shirt and kiss me again. Her lips curved upwards as she took off my jeans and she took off hers.

She screamed with pleasure throughout the experience, the lust in her voice and eyes never fading. I made her climax multiple times, she had the urge to keep on going. She moaned with pleasure with every action, until we were both exhausted. We laid in the bed together, both naked, panting heavily. Her bed was wet and stained but she didn't even care. She laid on top of me and kissed me again.

_I love you Ethan Wate._

_ And I love you Lena Duchannes, I always have and I always will._

We were both too tired to move and we laid there for what seemed like an hour. She curled into a ball next to me and rested her head on my chest. She was so happy and comfortable. I was the first to get up and get dressed again. She got dressed and sat next to me. I heard a rip and thought that Anders would be there like i expected by now, instead I found Link again.

"Oh my God what is that smell." It was the first thing he said and Lena's face was filled with a creeping pink. Link looked at us and put the two together and held his fist out the same way he did when both of us were at the Cineplex. "Finally getting it on Wate? About time." He had a smirk on his face and ran his hand through his spiky blonde hair.

"Why are you here Link?" Lena asked "Who told you to come into my room."

"Well, I checked Greenbrier and Ethan's room and you two weren't there. I went to the water tower and didn't find you there either so I came here. I didn't expect you two to have just finished ... you know." He rubbed his head embarrassed. "You guys should probably open a window or two before Macon comes up here."

I opened Lena's window letting the fresh air flood into the room, the smell quickly went away and when Link finally let go of his nose I started to talk. "So, why are you here man?"

He shifted a little, clearly nervous and began to speak. "Liv thinks she found how to deal with Lucian. She wanted to tell you to meet her at the study, everyone's there, even Anders." Link still didn't trust Anders like everyone else, I guess he didn't like the idea that someone was ripping into our rooms. I nodded my head at him and he quickly opened the door and descended into Macon's old room. We would be following him soon.

_You think they know why Lucian is doing this Ethan?_

_ No._

We both got up from the bed and went to the shower, she poked me playfully stating how I'm not rejecting her this time. After we both cleaned ourselves and dried off she got back on the bed with her clothes still exhausted.

I was hoping for a normal afternoon that I could spend with Lena, but I guess that is too much to ask for. Since when has normal ever been part of my life now. I grabbed Lena's hand and squeezed it lightly. I dragged her from the bed, she was obviously reluctant to go like me but we had to. I led her down the stairs and through the trapdoor.

The study had changed from the last time where everything was broken due to Lucian's rampage. This time there was a huge claw foot table like the one in the dining room, with ample seating since the study was more of a meeting area than Macon's private abode. The door was repaired and the books were rearranged. It still held the same dark and gloomy look as before but somehow seemed more warm.

A Caster encyclopedia was open in the middle of the table in front of Liv, she looked at me and smiled briefly before returning to the book. John was sitting next to her, leaning against the chair. Link was leaning back in his chair sitting directly across from Ridley, talking about a date or something. Macon was busy reading the same book I saw. Anders still preferred to lean against the wall like he always does. He looked at us and let out a small smile, today his purple eyes looked fierce as he stared at John. He was wearing a different chain today, in the center was a circle of gold with a fierce ruby in the middle.I took a seat next to Lena and held her hand. As we sat down Liv looked up and began to sit up, ready to give us an explanation.

"Ethan, we found a way to stop Lucian. We can defeat him." She was smiling bigger than I imagined.

"It's more complicated than you think Liv." I answered and her smile faded.

I heard a thump, someone was knocking on the study door. Everyone, even Link, stared at the study door with unrelenting vigilance, as if someone was going to make a jailbreak. Macon set down the book he was reading and walked carefully over to the door, he opened it slightly and saw Lucian. He had on the same black overcoat as always, except that one time where he was clad in armor, and had the word love written across his left cheek this time. His normally purple eyes seed more crimson today. Macon stood there dumbfounded and Lucian walked right in. Anders started to tense up and was prepared for combat this time. I sat there completely relaxed, Lena was still hiding behind my body.

"Wate, can you tell your friends I mean no harm this time and probably only this time?" Anders was still tense, there was no point in asking him to be relaxed. John and Liv began to sit back, John holding Liv in his hands protectively. I just sat there nodding my head. I saw his left hand again, the swirling patterns were as dark as ever. There was no marking on his right since he had no more Light. His eyes were different though, they were full of fear and despair compared to the usual hate and anger. He sat down at the chair opposite to Anders, I kept on thinking how awkward it must have been for the two of them.

"Anyway, Ethan." Liv was speaking again. "I think we know what kind of Caster you are." I sat up straighter and looked at her. "You're a Natural. One with an extreme devotion to Light. So much that you can turn the elements, like fire, into Light in its purest form. It explains the pure white flames that Lucian was burned by." Lucian shuddered at the end of the table. "Only two things can kill a Celestial, Light and Dark in their purest forms. Any exposure to a Mortal or Caster would kill them. Celestials are more tough, they can take many bolts of Light or Dark and still live, what you need to do is engulf them in it."

It explained why Lucian was so surprised and horrified at me throwing the arcs of piercing light at him. He found someone that could actually kill him.

She shifted a bit in her seat taking a piece of folded paper from her pocket and she began to read. "The Caster who is closest to the heavens, the Essence of Light, is the ancient redeemer and purifier. The Caster who is closest to the hells, the Essence of Darkness, is the ancient conquerer and defiler. The Essence of Light shall be born from a Natural while the Essence of Darkness shall be born from the Darkness itself, a Lilum. These two forces combined create the true Celestial of untold power, the Essence of Might. The Era chooses who will be blessed with the gifts of the Essences and who will be sacrificed. Only then the Essence of Might can appear." She folded the paper again. "It appears that the two Essences, I believe we know who they are. Are sources of unknown power. The power needs some sort of catalyst to obtain both so that the Essence of Might can be created."

Lena took Lucian's ring off her hand and held it out to Liv. Lucian's face frowned and Ridley's face looked enviously at the precious band. "What is this Liv? Try it, put it on." Lucian was doing everything in his power to not lunge at Lena and choke her again, his face was pained just from looking at someone else with the ring. Liv slid her finger around the band, the cool metal adjusted to the size of her finger and soon the metal dulled and the gem clouded. Lucian looked at the ring with disgust as if seeing the ring in the tarnished state was a disgrace. "Now watch what happens when Ethan wears it." I took the band and slid it on my finger, the metal twisting to match the width of mine. The ring regained it's perfection and brilliance. I gave it back to Lena who put it on immediately. Her once gold eye turned even more green and the tattoo of a dark caster was gone. Lucian looked at her in shock at what just happened.

"Girl, may I see that for a moment?" Lena took it off, her tattoo still gone. Lucian took it and slid it on his finger. The band glowed radiantly for a second but quickly blackened and turned into the same thing I saw when he fought me. He handed it back to me and it purified itself again. Lucian sighed and shook his head. "The ring can transfer energy and glows to the respected amount of Light and Darkness within. I have no Light anymore therefore the ring turns black." He turned to me. "But when you put it on, it was beautiful and gleaming. You must be my counterpart, pure Light. You had enough Light to purify the girl, you can use it for what Claire would have wanted. Keep it."

I slid the ring back onto Lena's finger her touch was warmer and softer than usual, her eyes were both Caster green, her swirling black tattoo erased. I saw the outline of something on her right hand, another silvery tattoo was dim and barely visible, but there. I heard Liv gasp "Oh my God thats why he needs Ethan." Lucian looked at her with a confused expression. "If you are pure Darkness and Ethan is pure Light, he'd be unstoppable. He could create anything and erase anything like a god."

Lucian's eyes flickered and he quickly answered Liv with annoyance. "Wate isn't a Celestial, he isn't pure light yet. If he was his eyes wouldn't be green they'd be white. His light may be strong but it isn't enough to stop Dan Marc. He must become a Celestial, maybe even the Duchannes as well." He shifted a little "But that's exactly what he wants, he can manipulate other Celestials and make them do his bidding."

I heard a sinister laugh and quickly scanned the room, nothing was out of the ordinary. I heard the matching voice, it was deep and dark. "Bravo Lucian and friends, you've figured out my plan for Wate and Duchannes, unfortunately thats all you will learn." I saw a man who seemed to walk into the room through the wall, which he probably did. He was a few inches taller than Lucian, his muscular build peering out like Anders, his hair jet black with a silver stripe on the left side. He wore clothing that seemed to be made out of darkness itself, the robes pure black as if nothing was there. His eyes were the deep purple of a Celestial. His presence alone shook the ground of the study.

"What do you think you're doing here Lucian? Claire missed you. You haven't visited her yet." He smiled maliciously and brought his hand to the ground. His palm was filled with darkness and he lifted up a golden cage. Inside the cage was Claire her expression pained but otherwise she was the same as the visions. Lucian's face darkened and he started to walk back to the man. Green flames shot up as he tried to walk back, Lena's face was full of rage.

"Are you just going to walk back to him? After all that Ethan sacrificed for us to trust you?" Lucian's eyes shined and his hair glowed, the signs that he was casting. Before we knew it a black wall appeared behind him and in front of us. We could still see him from this side, his face seem to be tortured, he was reluctantly returning to his master. More of the same green flames pierced the wall and burned his body, he stood there surprised at what just happened. He continued walking towards Dan Marc and said his goodbyes.

"I bid you all ado, I belong to this man as long as he has Claire. I will do anything for her." He turned around and gave me a death stare. "Even if I have to kill you Wate! Even if I have to kill you and your girlfriend!" A dark pillar of flame erupted from the ground just in front of Lena, I pulled her back to me franticly. I tried to see where Lucian was, but he was already gone. I looked at Lena's eyes, they were still green as the day I first met her. I ran my hand through her hair, savoring the lemons and rosemary.

Dan Marc was still there, flashing his evil smile, he slammed the cage into the ground and it dematerialized. He slapped his hand with the other to remove the dirt. He looked up at me and grinned. "Mr. Wate, you will be joining me soon. I'm afraid it will be a rather, involuntary and unpleasant experience. I will allow you to bring one thing with you, just not the Duchannes."

He flashed a look at Lena, she wasn't afraid anymore, her hands filling with energy, her hair flowing in the Caster breeze. "I will come and get you tomorrow, I don't know when but I will. Until then enjoy your last hours with your girlfriend, I wouldn't mind killing her in exchange for you." He stomped the ground and a black pillar of flame appeared. He laughed one final time and then he was gone.

Anders fell to the floor and held his hand over his chest as if he just got stabbed. For a moment his purple eyes faded to green but quickly recolored themselves. He moved his hand and I saw exactly why his hand was over his chest. In the middle right between his pecs was a swirling black pattern. Anders' eyes filled with fear at the realization at what the mark was. The silver mark on the back of his right hand stopped glowing. His jet black hair turned to white for a second but quickly changed back. The mark on his chest changed again, it was the same one I saw on Dan in the visions. Anders looked down at his chest again and his face immediately drained of color. In a second he rifted out of the room with such force it send chairs and books flying. After all this I was only thinking on what the hell was going to happen.


	11. Chapter 11 - Revelations

**A/N: So I decided to slow down the plot in this chapter since I couldn't find a good way to continue it to the time Dan said he would take Ethan. So instead I split it up into two parts. This one is mostly just fluff and history between Anders and Dan. Hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Macon's study was a disaster after the resulting explosions of Light and Dark. Craters of shattered stone that served as a foundation for the room were littered where the cataclysmic power touched the ground or shot out of it. Books laid scattered on the porous ground with their respective shelves destroyed. The worst area is the place Lucian brought the Dark wall down. The room looked like it was sliced into two.

Macon seemed annoyed to say the least. His study has been the battlegrounds of most of our recent battles, getting progressively more destroyed every time. He picked up the books from the ground, most of which were Caster ones. The only one that wasn't was the one he was currently reading and he sat it down on his desk. He summoned black holes where Lucian and Anders sat, sucking the splintered wood into the dark depths. Soon the study was back to normal if you ignored the holes in the ground.

Lena already ran upstairs and I pursued her relentlessly. She stumbled up the spiral staircase than dominated the house and shut the door with a bang. I could hear her sob behind the doors and a part of me felt like it was going to shatter. I didn't want her to feel this way, I wish we didn't have to have any part in this conflict. Nothing ever works out for us, when something does, something greater is taken in return.

I gathered up the courage to knock on her door. I took a deep breath, ready to encounter the pain and misery that I was about to feel. I heard her walk towards the door and turn the knob. She immediately pulled herself into my chest, wrapping her arms around me so tight that Amma herself would have felt ashamed for how weak she was. I tucked a stray curl behind her ear and gently leaned down to kiss her forehead. I brought her to the bed and sat down, rubbing her back and running my fingers through her long hair, trying to calm her down. I wrapped my arms around her now and leaned into her, dragging her close to me. The sobbing soon stopped but she stayed in the same position as before. He eyes stared down a floorboard and her hands were both place on my chest now.

"Ethan, promise me one thing." She managed to croak the words. Her voice was raspy from the crying she's done.

"Anything Lena Beana." I turned her head so that her eyes met mine.

"Promise me that you won't leave me again." Her countenance was one of pure despair.

"I promise." I lied. I wanted to believe that I could ward off Dan Marc and that he would retreat and leave us alone. If he could control Lucian though I have no idea how powerful he was. "Think of all the obstacles we've overcome L. Your sixteenth moon, Sarafine and Abraham, even the crucible. We've made it back to each other every time, I promise it won't be any different." I didn't even believe the words I was saying. I was hoping desperately that we could find a way.

I ran my hand through a tendril of hair before tucking it behind her earlobe. I brought my lips down onto her for a small chaste kiss. Her lips tasted salty from all the tears that have fallen. I brought her close into my chest again, letting her feel my heartbeat. The steady rhythm didn't calm her down a bit and she resumed crying. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small black box. Knowing how ticklish she was I gently ran my fingers over her silky skin. She burst out laughing for a bit and I got her to look at me. I held the black box out for her to see and gave it to her insisting that she opened it. Inside the black rectangle was a locket made of pure gold with an emerald on the front. She carefully ran her fingers over the cold metal and looked at me with sadness.

"Is this your version of a goodbye present?" I shook my head and pushed down the green gem on the front opening the locket. Our initials were carved into the sides of the inside combined with the date I first found her crying at Greenbrier. She took off the charm necklace carefully making sure that her long hair didn't cling to the metal and slipped the locket onto it. I helped her put it back on and kissed her cheek.

"It's not a goodbye present. I think its more of a promise, a betrothal. That is of course if you want to marry me Lena Duchannes." She gazed at me with her beautiful huge green eyes and clasped her hand around the locket I gave her.

"I don't think I'd ever love anyone as much as you Ethan Wate. Of course I will marry you." She reached up for my face and kissed me quickly.

"Then consider it a promise. I will marry you no matter what, no matter what happens no matter what other people say." I tucked another curl behind her. "It's a promise that I intend to keep."

"Ethan-"

"Yes?"

"You will do anything to get back to me right?" I answered by taking one of her hands into mine and squeezing it lightly. "Do you want me to stay tonight L?" She nodded and quickly dragged me into her bathroom. I just noticed how battered and beat up she was from all the action from earlier. Shards of rock were stuck in her hair, dirt and mud clung to her skin and minor cuts were countless on her normally flawless complexion. I stopped her from entering the shower and pointed to the tub that was now filling with hot water.

"Get in, I'll help clean you tonight." She smiled faintly and entered the tub. The scent of minor herbs was refreshing and the steam radiating from the tub into the cold rooms of Ravenwood made me drowsy. I grabbed a nearby washcloth, knowing that I would need it for the layers of dirt and mud caked on her skin. I gently started at her neck and made my way up her face, making sure I didn't ever press too hard to ruin anything she had.

I soaked the cloth and began to scrub furiously at the offending stains of dirt layered on her. I momentarily ignore the slight moans where I had scrubbed too hard. Lena giggled when I scrubbed her chest, saying that I didn't need to worry since I already seen her before. I made my way down to her legs. I washed her inner thigh, making my way up to her knee and repeated the same thing for the other leg. I watched her face as her cheeks turned a rosy red. I tried not to touch the sensitive flesh underneath as I scrubbed. She smiled at the thought and I rolled my eyes.

I finished and tossed the washcloth into the tub, I watched as the suds from the soap floated their way to cover her body. I took a handful of the bubbles and dropped it onto her hair grinning mischievously. She swatted me away playfully and held me the washcloth. "Well, are you just going to stand there or help me get these suds out of my hair?" I laughed and surveyed my work. I knelt by the edge of the tub and squeezed the cloth, letting the warm water flow onto her back. I leaned down to kiss her forehead and she batted me away.

"I don't see anymore dirt L but I can always check harder if you want me to." Her eyes focused on me with happiness. She laughed at the thought and I quickly grabbed the towel and held out my hand to help her get out. She hesitated for a moment but then accepted my help. The water ran down her body which was rosy red from the warmth. She only made one step out of the tub before leaning forward and falling into my arms, the result of standing up too quickly. Her cheeks flushed with pink and I gently dried her off with the towel. I tried to focus on the floorboards when she walked back to her room in just bare skin, staring intently at the wood until she had at least clothed herself. "Ready for bed L?

"Ethan, you don't have to look away, theres nothing that you haven't already seen." She smiled and pushed me onto the bed playfully and pointed at my jeans. "Those will be uncomfortable." I averted my gaze as she took the clothing off and threw it aside. She played with my shirt before I brought myself close and wrapped my arms around her. Our limbs soon were entangled and indistinguishable when she wrapped her legs and arms around me. The scent of lemons and rosemary filled my nose as she laid her head peacefully on my chest cavity, my heartbeat pounding against her head. I grabbed the covers and placed them over us, our warmth increasing dramatically.

We were both exhausted from todays events, she laid in a deep sleep within minutes while I was left tortured with a few more minutes of restlessness. I wondered how things would turn out tomorrow, if I would be separated from her for life. Nothing seemed to ever work out for us, there was always another obstacle after we just cleared one. The pillars of Light and Dark with the deep green flames, all came rushing to my mind as I thought about Lucian's reaction. Dan Marc came to my mind next and I found myself wondering about every aspect of him. "Go to sleep. Your thoughts are keeping me up, just enjoy the time we have now." A voice interrupted my musings and I opened my eyes briefly to see Lena still resting her head on my chest. Drowsiness began to take over my body and soon enough I too was fast asleep.

* * *

"Nothing is eternal Ethan." I felt a hand on my shoulder and I turned around to meet Dan Marc face to face. "You will learn that the hard way I suppose." Lena was laying down on a slab of stone sleeping. I tried to run over to her but an invisible wall blocked my path. "Relax Ethan, it's just a dream. I came here to talk to you, after all I don't want to waste your precious time with Lena." She woke up from the sleep, hearing the familiar voice and glance in our direction. The invisible barrier broke as she jumped into my arms.

"How lovely, the two of you together." Dan sneered before sitting down on a nearby chair behind an expensive looking desk. We were all in some study. Expensive furniture littered the room. Precious gems and rare metals adorned the study while some resided on the wooden desk ahead. Two chairs popped up and Dan insisted that we sit down.

"What do you want?" Dan was pouring a glass of wine while nonchalantly gazing at us.

"I wanted to speak with you two. I have a proposition for you if you wish to accept." I felt a lump in my throat and swallowed. "You two have something I want." He pointed at the ring. "If you give me it I'll gladly leave you two alone."

"Why do you need Claire's ring?" He leaned back in his chair and sighed.

"Has Anders not told you? Then again he never says anything. It is an object of power, it can transfer energy of whatever element between wielders. Give me the ring in its current state and I will leave you two alone."

"What if we refuse?"

"Well, then I'll enjoy basking in your blood." He flashed a sinister smile. "I believe that it's time that you learned of Anders' past. He wasn't always the man you know. I wonder how may lies he has told you." He paused before motioning us to lean forward. My body lunged forward and then abruptly stopped, I saw Lena's do the same thing. I felt a slight chill as we drew closer, it felt as if the heat was being sucked right out. A hand was place on each of our foreheads and I immediately felt the icy touch numb my body. The room began to fade and swirl and my though was, well this is awkward, a vision in a dream.

* * *

_Anders was almost prepared to face Dan again. After what happened at the Heaven's Palace, the two of them have not seen each other in over a month. He remembered the events as if it were yesterday, his saber pierced Dan's soft flesh as if it were butter. Often he wondered on how he could do such a thing to his lifelong friend. Anders simply stated to himself that he was purifying the world of another evil._

_His long black hair fell down just past his shoulders, his white greatcoat was open, showing off his masculine build. The white coat seemed to shine in the little light of the tunnels. He knew that Dan wouldn't be happy, more or less infuriated with Anders' sudden appearance at his domain. A crescent key was pushed into the lock and twisted until the door flew open as if a massive gale of wind struck it. His purple eyes were resolute but his body was faltering. Anders took a deep breath questioning his resolve momentarily before disappearing into the illusionary entrance of the fortress._

_Anders popped out of the black dank hell that was the tunnels into the garrison that housed the elite guard. He sighed clearly annoyed by the fact that he was in the middle of the most rigorously trained soldiers. A shame that they would have to die if they came across him. He exited the garrison through the East gate leading into the central garden with relative ease. Normally the opening was heavily guarded with at least eight men, something unexpected must have happened to the castle._

_The central garden was beautiful and serene. He began to walk down to the South entrance which would take him to Dan's study and chambers. The North gate led to the bridge, the only way in and out of the stone fortress Mortally. The West gate was once linked to Ravenwood before Heaven's Palace. Now it linked into a voluminous library that had Caster tunnels into the Lunae Libre._

_Anders walked along the granite walkway that was a haven for creatures too big to weave in and out of the flower beds. The pink feldspar and crystalline quartz radiated brilliant light while the flowers flourished in the sunlight that always shined. The central fountain spewed some of the purest water seemingly infinitely from the top. He relished the beauty but quickly reminded himself what he was here for._

_The southern gate wasn't really a gate, it was more of a massive door. Two panels of Agarwood reinforced with what looked like blue steel marked the entrance into the luxurious abode. Anders knew that it wasn't steel, probably some expensive rare metal, Dan had a liking for shiny, expensive objects. He touched the massive wooden slab with his fingers and felt a massive shock that seemed to send him flying backwards. Curses flew out of his mouth and he blasted the door open with his Casted wind. The Agarwood didn't even crack at the blast and opened reluctantly to show what was hidden inside._

_A long hallway awaited his arrival. The blue and red silks hung from the wall showing the banners and designs that they hold so proudly. The gray stone brick held itself up proudly in this hall. Doors lined the hallway that were lit by electric torches for effect. There might have been seven in total, counting the one at the end of the hall. Anders knew what every one of these doors held for he had been here before. One of them was once his room when he wanted to escape Abraham. Three of them were private bedrooms for distinguished guests. One was a ceremonial room for rituals involving Celestial and Caster powers. One was his master suite that Dan rarely used since his wife died. The last was his beloved study that he seemingly spend all his time in now._

_He gathered up his courage and strength again and continued down the expanse until he reached the study door. He was about to know on the onyx colored wood but it opened expectantly as if Dan was waiting for him. The study was brilliant. A huge window dominated the back wall, showing the sea off and letting much sunlight in at all times. Armor was draped around a post, letting the craftsmanship be adored. Most of all the center desk was astounding. A massive Agarwood desk holding everything that would be needed for a ritual laid perfectly in front of the window. A black leather chair with gold trim sat comfortable behind the wooden brick. In the chair itself was Dan Marc, dressed in his usual hybrid leather jacket overcoat._

_"I did not expect to see you so soon Anders. My study still reacts to your presence or maybe is it something that you took from me? Maybe my soul?" The man looked no older than thirty and sounded the part. His eyes were different colors, one was the amethyst of a Celestial, another was the blue of a mortal._

_"You know what you have done Dan. You also know the vows that I have made to my order. I took some of you out so that you may remain pure." Anders stared intently at the man locked in a battle of who was going to falter or stammer first._

_"You mean the Era? I never knew they recruited you. I thought we had a deal that day Anders. We would get rid of the corrupted head and bring a new order." His amethyst eye filled with rage while the blue one flickered between shades of purple and azure._

_"I saw the darkness in you on that day, you wanted something else with that power. I had to cut you down, lest you become the same heretic we sought to eliminate. A shroud of Dark was wrapped around you that day, I simply extracted it from your soul." Anders remained calm and controlled as he always was. He had worked on his temper during the past few weeks in preparation for the verbal onslaught that would be given by Dan._

_"Now look what you have done to me." Dan pointed to his right eye, the one that was blue. "I'm half mortal! I can't even cast the rift anymore. I have to walk like one of their lowly race or a Caster" He shuddered after saying the word Caster with vehement hate. Dan stood up allowing his full height to meet Anders'. They were both 6'4" but Dan seemed to tower over Anders due to the slight incline up to the desk. He drew a saber from his desk, allowing his icy presence to be imbued within the metal._

_Anders back himself into a combat stance, never adverting his gaze on Dan. He drew his saber out and held it in front him, allowing his energy to flow freely into the cold steel. The sword glowed red hot from the fire that Anders was willing into the blade. His normally perfectly straight black hair blew wildly in the artificial breeze that was circling around them. Anders' greatcoat was flapping wildly as well as Dan's overcoat._

_Dan was the first to strike slashing down heavily onto the heated sword with his frozen one. Green and gold sparks lashed out from the blade due to simplicity of the elements chosen. If they had chosen Light and Dark, the entire fortress would crumble. They each tried to defeat the other with haste resulting in a stunning blade waltz. The normal steel ringed while the elements shot off the same sparks._

_Anders landed a counterattack on Dan giving him a good cut on his face. The wound burned his skin where it landed, releasing black smoke as a result. Dan backed in agony for a moment at the immense pain that was brought but quickly lunged forward again landing a similar strike onto Anders' shoulder. The greatcoat was cut and the icy blade melted into the first layer of flesh of the shoulder. His left shoulder went numb by the glacial steel and he quickly planned a counterattack._

_After much clashing Anders held his blade at Dan's jugular, the lump in his throat moved to get farther away from the blade as Anders held it still. He threw the blade away onto the ground and so did Dan. Anders didn't understand why he spared his life, but he did anyway. The long seeded feelings for the man he had been friends with for over fifty years finally got the better half of his judgement._

_He turned away and started to walk out of the study, that was either excruciatingly hot or freezing. Dan didn't stay down for long he grabbed a red jewel off of his desk and ran at Anders with incubus like speed. He pinned him down with his superhuman strength and plunged the fiery gem into his chest, creating a black swirling pattern that changed before his eyes. Anders stared down at the mark with horror and at his former comrade with incredulity._

_"The Mark of Siphoning. You plan to take my powers? You know your body cannot control them!" Anders bellowed before pushing the man from his body. He stood up quickly assessing the damage dealt to him. No blood was spilled except the one shoulder wound but the giant black swirl was a clear indicator that something had gone wrong._

_"That's where you are wrong old friend. Remember that I am a Celestial at heart and not a hybrid. I can handle your powers and I will take them all away from you, the way you did to me." Dan's azure eye darkened until it was the same amethyst as the other and Anders backed away in fear. Dan rifted behind Anders and attempted to finish him but he quickly reacted and pierced Dan's flesh again. He pulled the arm out of the wound, blood-soaked. He stared down at the man who had just crippled him for life and began to walk out of the study._

* * *

I wasn't in the study anymore I was in Greenbrier with Lena. I stared at her face, running my hand through a tendril of her wild black hair. She turned to me and I saw her countenance of fear. I brought her closer, enjoying the sensations even though we were still holding each other in sleep in reality. I kissed her on the lips quickly and turned to meet her gaze.

"Ethan, did you see what Dan did to Anders?" I nodded slowly and let her lean on my shoulder, the way she always does when she's scared. "If Anders was that strong, then Dan could easily kill us. I can barely imbue my essence in a catalyst. If he could imbue his in a simple saber..." I touched my finger to her lips and held her tighter.

"Don't worry L. I swear I will make everything okay." I almost believed my words but I reminded myself it would be harder than journeying through the Far Keep. "I made a promise remember? I won't leave you disappointed."

"You better not Ethan Wate." She looked up into my face with her huge eyes. I nuzzled her nose and brought our foreheads together, bringing my lips down for a passionate kiss now. I recoiled quickly as I heard the familiar melody that haunted us for years now.

* * *

_Nineteen Moons, Nineteen Tears_

_The day of parting is soon here._

_Power and Love cannot mend_

_There will be no one left to defend._


	12. Chapter 12 - Partings

**A/N: If you can please leave a review on how you think about the story, if you hate it, if you love it. I'll use your criticism to improve the chapters I'm currently reviewing and such.**

I laid right next to Lena, her body was curled up right next to me, her head resting against my thumping heartbeat. Her eyelashes were the longest I've ever seen and her peaceful countenance eased a small smile on my face. I ran my fingers through her hair and ghosted across the back of her neck, careful to not disturb her sleep, relishing the smell of the lemons and rosemary with the touch of her silky skin. Her hair was highlighted with golden bands of sunlight pouring through the window, she never looked more beautiful.

My own appearance was disgraceful compared to her perfect features. My shirt was torn and ripped in a few place, a diagonal slash went down from my left ribs and narrowly reached the first abdominal. Mud caked my jeans that I eyed folded on a chair across the room, my own features were marred with imperfections. Grime laid intwined in my hair, I forgot that I haven't taken a shower for a while, especially after all those fights in the tunnels, that stench will never go away. My hair was long and unruly again, I should just another haircut, maybe it would let Amma's sheer talk to me.

I couldn't tell if she would be proud of me. She would be proud since I defended my friend to the end, continued to go to Jackson every day never leaving a class or skipping a day since the day she died. Her room undisturbed as she would have wanted, like a shrine. Sure was a shrine for us. She'd be scolding me through all hells right now though after what Lena and I did on her birthday and all the trouble that had happened since then. Dealings with the most powerful Casters in existence.

My dad though, I knew it was about time I told him about Casters considering I might be gone for a long time. I didn't know how'd he react, knowing that mom was actually a supernatural librarian and not a simple historian and that the girl I loved could cause category five hurricanes and start forest fires in the blink of an eye. He'd probably claim me insane and ignore me for a few days but he'd eventually realize that I was right. I should tell him soon, considering that Lena was my betrothed. He'd notice my eyes first though, with my hair cut short and all.

That is of course, if Dan doesn't arrive first.

I wondered if Anders would ever be able to defend us with his waning power. What we saw in that vision was a champion of immense power, not some half mortal that he existed as now. That must have been some time ago. Maybe if I went with Dan I could find the crystal that took Anders' power. Then we could stop him for good. Although it would mean I had to take a considerable amount of time away from Lena. I would miss her beautiful eyes and body. Her laugh that set my soul on fire. Her smile that sent my heart pounding. It had to be done though.

A small movement across my chest interrupted my musings. She had shifted a bit, allowing her head to touch my shoulder and entangling her limbs in mine, dragging herself closer. Her consciousness began to drift into my mind and I felt it warming up my insides. A real smile grew on my lips as her eyes slowly opened, revealing the verdant greens that my Light had given her, their beauty only enhanced by the natural light. Her ivory skin had a gold tint from the sun, letting her look even more beautiful.

_Why do you look so surprised? _My mouth must have been open after staring at her for too long.

_You look like a goddess. _Her cheeks turned a rosy pink as she played with my shirt, trying to hide her blush. I chucked and promptly removed myself from her bed. A wave of disappointment flashed over her countenance only to be replace by happiness that made her eyes sparkle. I took a whiff of my shirt and recoiled in disgust, it smelled like rats from the Daree Keen and the sewers. Lena noticed my reaction and laughed before settling down.

_Is there some smell better cast?_

_ Yeah it's called a shower._

I rolled my eyes and headed for the bathroom, Lena quickly followed behind. I took off the putrid shirt and I let an out a sigh. I would definitely have to wash it by itself, it might infect my other clothes. Lena held it up with disgust as she held her nose to avoid the stench.

_I slept with this? _

_We must have been sacked out from yesterday._

_ But we didn't even..._

I hopped into the shower before she could finish and quickly washed myself. The water was heavenly against my grimy features and served well to remove the grease and small rocks that hung in my hair from our encounter with Dan. I dried myself with the tower that Lena always had out now, just incase I needed to use it. I found one of my old T-shirts that she liked to wear, the faded silver surfer one that she had visited my room with after her Seventeenth moon.

She was waiting for me with a smile on her face on the bed. Her curves were enticing with just her nightgown on, the white silk gently clinging on to her skin. I resisted the urge to rush to door and lock us in, knowing that Macon was right next to us sleeping in his new room instead of the trashed study. I made my way to her bed and sat beside her letting her lean on me. I took her hand and kissed it and made my way up to her shoulder, she flung her head back instinctively, allowing me to find the sensitive flesh on her neck. When I made no attempt to go farther she just looked at me with mock disappointment and punched me playfully sending me into a laugh and onto my back on the bed.

She held her body over my own and leaned down to kiss, her lips were soft and warm as always, even more when she fell onto me. A shot of blood trickled to my lower regions as she lifted up in surprise. She smiled before resuming our passionate kiss, her body fitting perfectly into mine as if we were made for each other. My body surged with warmth as we continued only to be interrupted by a curt knock against the door. It was already open and Macon was leaning against the wall opposite it. My face whitened and I prepared for the censure that was sure to follow.

"Mr. Wate, what are you doing in my niece's room? I hope that you two are not consummating the marriage that has not even happened yet." Lena blushed at the implications and I scratched my neck nervously, thinking about the next few words I was going to say. I got up from the bed and Lena went to her closet to find something to change into. When none came to mind I just asked another question. "Sir, how did you know about the betrothal?"

He exhaled his breath sharply and pretended to recoil. "Why it is the worst secret kept in your circle of friend. I believe Mr. Lincoln was the one who informed everyone, claiming that he knew a secret of yours." I felt my ears turn bright red as he gently patted my shoulder. "Relax boy, I know nothing happened last night or this morning, I haven't heard any unusual sounds throughout the house. There is another matter to consider, Mr. Wate." I gulped subtly as I prepared for what he was about to say. "You promised to marry my niece without my consent. Wouldn't it be the proper thing to do to ask a young lady's father, father-like figure, for permission to wed?"

A tint of amusement entered his eyes as I stuttered at my response. This was not what I was expecting at all to happen when he saw Lena pressed up against my body on the bed. "Sir, I'm very sorry for making a promise to marry before receiving your consent. Would you forgive me and let me marry niece, the girl I love?" He flashed a smile and laughed heartily.

"I'm sure that if I refused you two would smite me along with Amarie and Jane in the Overworld. I have no doubt in my mind, Mr Wate, that you would make a perfect match for my Lena." He turned smartly on his heel and before leaving the room faced me again to say something. "Breakfast is ready, I hope that you two will arrive soon, you know how Kitchen feels about people arriving late." He walked out of the room and I sank into one of Lena's ornate chairs. She opened the closet door and approached me. I closed the gaps between out lips and laid a chaste kiss.

_So? How'd it go?_

_ Perfect, he's perfectly happy. _I smiled and attempted to try to hold my excitement.

_He better be. _I let out a small chuckle and took her hand

_Come now, Macon said that breakfast is ready._

An entire array of breakfast food awaited our arrival as we walked into the dining room. A huge platter of bacon rested on a silver plate in the middle, probably a prize winning ping before made into it's current delicious form. I loaded my plates with scrambled eggs, bacon and toast into my plate before taking some of the cookies and muffins available. I swear I saw Lena roll her eyes at my platter as she picked up a few eggs then toast and a small portion of bacon. Macon reached out and grabbed a massive blueberry scone and munched contently at the head seat while reading the daily newspapers. After we ate our fills, the table cleared itself and I stood up to meet Lena. I leaned in to kiss her forehead and pulled away promptly before my desires took advantage of the situation.

Macon shooed us away from the room and out of the house as he read the same book that he always had around now. I still couldn't quite make out the title. We walked slowly, enjoying the time we spent together, over to the massive oak at Greenbrier. I let Lena sit first and followed up right next to her.

She began to take off her charm necklace and handed it to me. "Just incase you are taken from me."

I refused at first but she was insistent so I wrapped it around my neck and fingered the charms, relieved that I would have a part of her in my other life with Dan.

"Can you believe L, that it has only been about two years since we met? It felt like a lifetime, well I guess it was for me." I wrapped my arm around her waist as she brought herself closer. "It hurt like hell for the first few months but the last six have easily made up for all the heart attacks I had." She rolled her eyes and jabbed me. I ghosted across her collarbone, watching the goosebumps appear as she shuddered involuntarily. I reached out at the locket, the green gem in the center refracting light brilliantly, and touched it briefly before I brought her face close to plant a kiss on her lips. Soon the world began to swirl and fade to gray. I hugged her closer so that we'd be inseparable even in the visions.

_Dan sat down at his massive Agarwood desk in his private study. Delight and contentment exuded onto his countenance as he pulled a ruby crystal out of his pocket. He rubbed the jewel with unbridled affection as he gently felt the smooth corundum move between his own callused hands. The sword fight with his old friend left his vulnerable for a few moments, that Anders didn't decide to capitalize on. Instead he merely walked away, unwilling to finish whatever he started._

_ Dan felt a rush of power whenever he held the stone, some of Anders' powers were trapped within the stone and it would continue to draw on it until the day he died or all of it were gone. It would take years, maybe decades or even a century but he would get what he wanted. The power of the Heaven's Palace. Anders had realized his plan just before it came to fruition. The countless amounts of Celestial power absorbed by and stored within their own tiny crystals were countless._

_ He opened the very bottom right drawer. It was the largest one, taking up three-quarters of the right side and was as deep as the desk at a length of two feet. The drawer opened without a sound, the servants made sure to oil all the metal of his desk ever month. Dan smiled in a merciless smile. The countless amount of small rubies laid dormant in the drawer. Their power was minuscule compared to Anders' but it would serve as fuel regardless. The flow of power coursed through his blood raging hot as if it knew it weren't in its rightful owner. Dan thought of it as invigorating and that it would help fuel his endeavors._

_ He grabbed a handful of the precious gems and held them firmly together, melding them together to form a perfect red sphere. The crystalline ball held an exquisite shine and refracted light. He pressed the ball firmly into his chest where Anders had impaled him. The wound never fully healed and made no attempt to do so. The blood stopped flowing out of it long ago but the skin never healed nor the vital organs and tendons below. The only thing that held him alive was his power and that was diminishing as well for using the forbidden arts. He let loose a bloodcurdling scream that rang throughout the south-wing of the castle, he was lucky no servants were in here at this time of day._

_ He let the spherical ball drop to the floor with a thump and held his hand over his wound. The slash on his face and arm were fully healed and only offered minor pain when he touched them. The hole was much different though, whenever magical devices or Casts were held or uttered by him, a similar feeling always repeated itself. It was the same feeling as when Anders could have killed him. He gingerly picked up the ball of red rock and dropped it back into the drawer. He had been melding the gems together for quite some time, allowing the energy reserve to be as massive as possible, and that he could eventually make more room for Anders' power._

_ The young boy, Lucian he had found earlier made himself at home, staying in the guest quarters in the south-wing until Dan found his counterpart. He allowed Lucian to spar with the weapon master and elites and allowed him access to his personal Caster library. The young boy showed some promise as his ability with a saber and his Casts became more deadly. He could now manipulate lightning, maybe even fire soon. He reread the analysis his good friend, a Caster that gave him his research on Celestial matters, over again. One line stuck out in particular in the hypothesized prophecy of his research. 'The pure Light shall break a crack in the eternal nightmare.' Everything else up until that point had seemed to go according to plan._

_ 'A young boy of black comes to seek what he loves' He already found Lucian 'The strongest of all with fall to the weakened.' Anders had already succumbed to the pathetic weakened state he was in, though Dan could't underestimate him, the majority of his strength still lies within him. 'The boy of white will rebel before being pacified.' He didn't understand that either, it probably hasn't happened yet. The researcher had always been correct with his predictions and Dan had no intent on doubting him now._

_ 'The strong will be forsaken by the elite and the weaken saved by the meek. A long chain of destruction awaits all that oppose the pure Light, but not before the Darkness fights a hard battle. Darkness will fade, giving the Light a chance to shine its full illumination. The head will fall and the power within will scatter.' Dan couldn't help but smile at reading the last few sentences. He had even measured the invasion of Heaven's Palace. He would take their powers after the service and he would conquer the worlds._

I lifted my head to see where I was after the vision. We were still under the ancient oak at Greenbrier, Lena was cold though as if the frosty steel saber Dan possessed cut a wound into her. I nudged her shoulder and her eyes refocused and looked up at me. Her fear was evident in her countenance, her eyes dimmed as her body shivered from the cold. I wrapped my body around hers, trying to let her take some of my heat but no change happened. She grew wide eyed and I whipped around to meet what she was seeing.

Dan Marc stood there at the opposite end of the clearing in full glory. A crimson greatcoat hung open like Lucian revealing a masculine build. A red ruby was centered in his chest where two intersecting scars met, right over his heart. An aura of darkness settled on him as the grass turned brown right beneath his feet. His steel saber hung from the side in its scabbard of black leather sewn together with what seemed like golden thread. His hair billowed in the artificial gale that surround him.

"Mr. Wate, Miss Duchannes, A please to see you two again. I expected a bit more resistance from you two lively people." He shot a look at me. "I'm here to take you boy. No matter the cost." Black walls raised themselves out of the ground and towered above us to what seemed like the heavens themselves. Lena grabbed onto me and I stroked her hair for what might have been the final time. The lemons and rosemary heightened my senses and lit a fire in my chest to do whatever I needed to stay with her.

Dan walked leisurely over to us, his gait was unwavering and steady, each footstep left another spot of dying grass. The boots exuded a repulsive aura as they made their way across the once verdant field. His saber was still hanging on his side.

_L, Whatever you do. Don't get hit by the ruby. _She nodded in agreement as I focused my energy into my palm, allowing me to Cast. I felt her soft touch enter mine and a bright lime light was exuding from our hands. Dan seemed amused at best and retained the same leisurely gait. His feet left shards of ice on the grass, preserving the brown atrocities for a few more minutes. A lifted my hand up and shot cracks of lightning at our pursuer. Lena joined in and Caster green bolts appeared out of her hand.

He drew his saber and blocked the bolts with ease, the electricity seemed to have no effect on the blade even though it was metal. I imagined a fire consuming him and soon white flames engulfed him, but he simply waved a finger mockingly and extinguished the white flames with a simple flick of his wrist. He rifted away from sight and reappeared behind us with speed only equal to light. I felt a sword on my neck and I stayed perfectly still. I turned my eyes over to Lena but she was chained to the tree with ominous black chains. When the hell did that happen?

"Checkmate. I believe I win." Red symbols began to appear on the ground while the ground darkened to a pure black. Lena struggled with the chains and attempted to make her way out but to no avail. I heard Dan snarl and snap his fingers. The chains tightened immediately and Lena let out a otherworldly scream. I cringed carefully, making sure that the blade didn't penetrate my neck. The symbols glowed and I soon saw two shadows in front of me. Both had an executioners axe in their hands poised and ready to behead someone.

"A ceremony rarely witnessed by anyone other than my initiates. Consider it an honor, Lena, that you may feast your eyes on this. Ethan will not remember anything of his past, he will be my weapon." He glared at Lena with a wicked smile. "Don't worry Ethan this won't hurt." The executioners raised their pikes higher and I quickly ran my fingers over Lena's charms. They released, sending the heavy metal down through the air. The pain never came just as blood wasn't drawn. I kneeled there thinking about one last thing before I parted.

I'll always love you Lena Duchannes I always have and I always will.


	13. Chapter 13 - Forgotten

**A/N: Shorter, transitional chapter. I needed to introduce some new things and reintroduce some older things. Also if you could please leave a review, I'd like to what you think about the story so far.**

I stood in front of a black cast iron gate next to an old beat up Volvo. I had a chain necklace with normal looking things on it. I rubbed each of the charms and eyed them carefully, a red piece of yarn, a bent piece of wire in the shape of a star. Maybe it was important to me, I didn't know. The one thing that stood out was an old soft gold ring. It caught the light perfectly and hurt my eyes looking at the reflected light. I wondered where I had gotten all of these things, things of this value. I don't even remember my name let alone my past. Maybe this dream will tell me.

I pushed the iron gate open and walked on a dirt path. Old cobbles laid in the dirt, maybe this place was abandoned? The trees thinned to show a garden of sorts. Magnolias and lemon trees lined the path to an impressive manor. Despite the apparent neglect of the beaten path the garden and the manor were perfect. Huge white Doric pillars held the roof above the patio from caving in. A light was on in a window. I walked up the stairs, they groaned under my weight. I guess the house wasn't as well restored as I though. Something pounded in my head, it felt like a heavy weight was attached to my brain. I tried as hard as I could to stop it.

I reached the door and they opened automatically. I raised an eyebrow and looked around to make sure no one was around that I didn't know. I chucked for a while and remembered that it was my dream. A huge spiral staircase dominated the center of the chamber. A full grand piano and furniture that looked like it belonged in a catalog more than anything sat next to a warm wood burning fireplace. Something in my conscious told me to climb the stairs and go to a certain room, like it was once my own. A portrait of a frighteningly beautiful woman laid on the wall next to the staircase. Her eyes were as golden as the sun and the locket she wore was pure silver of the moon. I felt something nag at the back of my mind but again I couldn't put my finger on it. I guess I'd recover eventually.

A plain white door stood in front of me where my mind told me to stop. It was a normal door, brass doorknob and everything, but it felt like something more important was behind it. I gingerly opened the door peering inside, feminine script was lined against the wall, poetry I guessed. An open book of Pablo Neruda laid on the nightstand and a simple white cotton shirt was crumpled in a chair. The four poster bed was massive, an ornate chair laid in front of a mirror. I opened the closet and found skirts and shirts of various colors. A girl's room, was I a girl? I don't think I am. I sat on the bed, something told me to wait a while and something good would happen.

After what felt like half an hour I began to give up hope. Maybe I was wrong with my feeling. I should get up and explore the rest of this weird manor, maybe they had some food around. As I was just about to get up from the bed the doorknob jingled and the door swung open to reveal a strikingly beautiful woman. She had curly black hair, as black as midnight. Her eyes were a deep green meaning something... _Casters_. Yes, Casters that what she was. A small crescent moon birthmark was on her left cheekbone. She was beautiful in more than just face, her body had curves any man could lust for. She was perfect and enticing. Maybe she was witty and humorous too, she's make a perfect spouse.

"What are you doing here?" She put her hand over her chest and jumped back in surprise. Her lips were red in contrast to her ivory skin, it made me lust for her even more, yet something told me she was already mine. I shook it off and knew it was only a dream.

"I could ask the same thing. It is my dream after all." I felt a smirk growing on my face.

"It's also my dream." She stepped forward into the room. "Well, I guess it is a dream so you can journey back here."

"Tell me something. Where am I?"

She stood there wide eyed and I think I could make out tears from her eyes. "You mean you don't know? You've been here so many times, especially this room."

"Not the faintest idea."

She broke down into sobs that made my heart shatter for some reason. "Ravenwood. Ravenwood Manor. Can you remember anything now?" I shook my head and she made her way to the wall and huddled into a small ball, crying intensely into her jeans. I heard rain splatter against the windows at an alarming pace. A torrent of rain must have found it's way into my dream.

"Do I know you, ma'am?" I asked from my bed position.

"You knew me better than anyone else and I knew you too."

"I'm so sorry. I can't remember."

"That's okay, just remember my name for now." Tears flowed down her cheeks even harder now. I nodded. "Lena, Lena Duchannes. Please remember for me."

"Lena Duchannes, that name seems so familiar yet so far away. Tell me, do you know my own name?" She nodded and between sobs she managed to make out something.

"It was a beautiful name. Ethan, Ethan Lawson Wate."

I opened my eyes and gasped for breath. I was on a plush mattress, surrounded by expensive furnishings and most importantly a man clad in black in the corner. The room was a stark contrast to the Lena's room. The walls did not exude a comfortable homey feeling. The walls were a simple grey stone brick with the occasional tapestry or banner hanging. The carpet underneath was a rich purple and gold, with designs of spiraling gold leading their way to the exit of the room. A castle, that's what it's called. An electric lamp stood itself on my nightstand. An updated modern castle.

The figure moved from the shadows, he was garbed in a white button down shirt with black dress pants. He hung a crimson coat on his shoulders, acting like some type of some cape. I noticed the straps that clung the coat to his shoulders and the golden chain the brought the two ends together very loosely at the neck. A saber was slung across his waist with a black leather belt imbued with gold. He had long unruly, black hair that greyed out as you moved to the back of his head. His eyes were like two amethysts shining in the light.

"Ah! So you're awake, I was beginning to worry about your health. You see you were unconscious for four whole days."

"Where am I?"

"Why my castle, Castle Headrel. My servants told me it means castle of the heavens in an old forgotten language. Then I guess it could mean anything." He let out a small chuckle "I'm Dan Mark, pleased to meet you Mr. Wate. Would you like a tour of the estate? Don't worry about nourishment here, I set up a warding spot to avoid the grasps of hunger and pain and weariness."

I rose from the bed and walked carefully for my head was swirling for standing up too quickly after being in bed for too long. "Careful, don't want you to have another head injury." I grunted in response and made my way across the room, staggering at first but eventually finding my balance.

"This is my private wing. Although I do prefer to spend most of my time in a smaller subsection." He pointed to a set of onyx doors surrounded with gold trim. "It's also warded, nothing may enter or leave using magic or Casts. The only exit and entrance is the door over there. This section that we just walked through." He pointed at the set of brown and silver doors that we'd walked through after exiting the bedroom. "Unlike mine it is not warded, so you may rift into there. If you should try to do the same into mine you'll only find yourself outside the door on your butt." He pointed to another set of brown and silver doors. "That is the guest wing, it houses the various nobility that choose to reside here. They prefer to not place themselves in our affairs, too much pride."

"This is the South Gate, the castle was built around a central garden, I'm leading you there right now." Elaborate tapestries and masterpiece paintings lined the walls abundantly as we neared the gate or rather a small tunnel leading to the exit. "There used to be a door here believe it or not. It was the small exotic wood that my door is made of. Sadly an old friend of mine came here for revenge and the power of the Casts sent the door crumbling into oblivion. It doesn't matter, if a supernatural invades this place then they can just break it down anyway."

The garden was lush and green. There were more fields than actual plants. Eight ruby red orbs were spread across the center where an ornate fountain spewed water. The spheres glowed unnaturally, as if they lusted for something. Magnolias and lemon trees line the path from the South gate, the same amount and order as the creepy manor I saw. The cobbles were perfectly in place unlike the weather beaten path at Ravenwood but it lacked a certain aspect to it, it lacked aging. The grass was unnervingly green and the roses a bright red. Nothing seemed to be anything but perfect.

Dan led us across to the East gate. People rushed in and out of the gate, clearly it was some important point in the fortress. The only thing every one of them had in common were their golden feline eyes. Some were clad in heavy black plate mail, seemingly absorbing the very light that caught the grounds, others were dressed in common clothes hurrying around the grounds. Two of the imposing men in black stepped in front of me, they countenance was stern and unwavering. A saber hung around their sides, their eyes were yellow as the sun.

"Who is this new blood?" One of them sneered, flashing a wicked smile.

"Don't know." The other said. "Don't you know that this isn't a place for some scrawny boy like you? Real men train here." I ignored them and tried to bypass them but they followed my every more. "The nerve! I'll have to show you a bit of respect." He raised his gauntlet and prepared to punch. I glared at him with an intensity that if I stared any harder I might have burned a hole in him. The gauntlet shattered and the metal twisted around his hand, crushing the bone structure in his hand. He let out a yelp and his comrade whisked him away to the side, attempting to take the broken gauntlet off. Dan let out a hearty laugh.

"They are guards, stupid ones if you ask me. They passed what my Arms Master claims to be training and now they think they have authority. Good thing you put them in their place." He smiled and continued to walk into the East section of the castle.

"What is this place?"

"Training grounds, all the casters I've gathered here train to master their abilities and other common casts." The din of swords clashing became louder as we approached the practice rings. A woman sparred with a man with steel blade. A piece of red silk hung on the blade just past the hilt. She had straight black hair, tied back into a ponytail. Her eyes were amethyst just like Dan's. Her hair constantly moved and flowed in the Caster breeze. She quickly out maneuvered her opponent. She looked remarkably like Lena, except for the straight hair and eyes.

"Claire! We have a guest." She looked up from the defeated opponent and muttered incoherently at the victim before walking up to where we stood. "Mr. Wate, this is Claire. Claire this is Mr. Wate. I suggest that you get to know her in the future Ethan. She's going to be your personal Arms Master, a real privilege as I only allow her to train the ones I believe to have potential. With that I'll leave you two alone. Feel free to explore the grounds Mr. Wate I believe that you already know how to rift so I do not believe that you will get lost." He strode off before smiling faintly at Claire. She rolled her eyes and led me down to the practice ring.

"Ethan is it? I think I heard of you before from someone else here on the castle grounds. Grab a saber and enter the ring just hack away at me and I'll judge at how much work we need to do." I grabbed the one dropped by the man who was soundly defeated and held it in my hand. The blade was perfectly balanced and felt like an extension of my arm. I stepped into the ring and touched swords with her before engaging into a relentless assault. She blocked blow after blow effortlessly as I tried to maintain my fury. She hardly moved before retaliating with a quick swipe that knocked the blade out of my hand and pointed at my jugular with the sword. "Kill point." She dropped the blade and stepped away before waving her hand at me.

"I've seen enough, we have a lot to work on but not today I have other things I need to do. Enjoy the castle, go explore or something but be back here at sunrise tomorrow before morning meal." She curtly walked away after she finished her sentence and walked to another man who was also soundly defeated.

I walked back my quarters, and laid on the bed. The soft mattress had no effect on soothing my aching muscles but mostly my pride. I would find a way to beat that Claire but until then I'd better figure out who I was. I took out a piece of paper in the desk and found a pen. I wrote down two things on the parchment.

_My name: Ethan Wate_

_The girl: Lena Duchannes_

I rubbed the golden ring again, enjoying the cool metal as it touched my burning skin, the sun was strong today and it beat down relentlessly. I felt myself becoming drowsy as the cool diminished and was replaced with a soothing warmth. I struggled to stay awake. My head pounded in the back and I felt the same heavy weight I felt when I was in the dream at Ravenwood. I opened my mind and let the weight dissolve into my mind.

_Who are you and what do you want?_ I kelted furiously, maybe if the person realized that they were trying to Kelt with the wrong person they'd stop. I wondered how someone could even Kelt on the wrong channel.

_You're here!_ I felt a surging warmth throughout my body and a growing pressure growing around my chest area. _You still don't know who you are don't you? _

_Who are you?_

_The girl you always loved._

_I never love anyone, at least anyone that I can remember._

_Lena Duchannes, rhymes with rain?_

_I'm sorry doesn't ring a bell._

_It's okay Ethan, I'm sure that you'll remember me eventually. Just come back soon._

_Wait what come back?_

_Yeah you were taken by Dan._

_Really? He seems like a nice guy._

_It's just a facade, please just promise me something Ethan, just come back to me, I need you._

I felt her consciousness slip out of mine and I ran to the piece of paper on the desk. I wrote down another piece of information about my past life franticly.

_I loved her. Lena Duchannes._


	14. Chapter 14 - Lemons and Rosemary

**A/N: Another chapter of Ethan at Dan's place, plot with some fluff. Sorry for getting Chapter 13 out later than I usually do and the fact that it was shorter than normal. As always if you can leave a review, it would be much appreciated. Hope you enjoy!**

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Two massive oaken doors opened with a groan to reveal an extensive library behind it. Stone stairs climbed the sides to the second level while some fell down into the basement. Stacks towered above me like thirty foot giants while some tomes were placed on stands, allowing the sunlight from dawn graze the yellow parchment. A small metal sign hung on the wall to the right saying simply, _Caster. _Wherever I was, I was at a Caster section of a library. A soft light came out of the _C_ stacks. I walked over there curiously.

A book was placed on the stand conveniently, radiating a soft glow. A plain brown cover and binding held the papers together, though the binding looked ready to snap. In the center, silver lettering made out the words, _Cast Encyclopedia. _I gingerly touched the cover and the book flew automatically to a page predetermined for me. The script slowly started to appear, letters at a time, filling the yellow paper with words and diagrams. On the left corner of the page it said, _Memory Cast. _Odd, it's just the thing I needed.

I skimmed through the text, ignoring all the precautions and possible consequences presented from the book, nothing of that nature mattered as long as I got more information about my past, who knows maybe I'd recover fully from this amnesia. I read the words carefully, making a mental note on each line. I read the lines over and over again until I could recite it from memory and tried to speak the words of power. Nothing happened though, I should have expected that, after all it was a dream.

Sunlight flooded the room and doused the grey walls with a golden sheen. The four poster bed was bathed completely with the light from the massive window opposite. I quickly got off the bed and jotted down the words of the cast on the piece of paper before my memory would fail. I looked at the paper carefully, making sure that I had made no mistakes. After I satisfied my cautious side I took a look around my room, trying to find anything irregular, if Lena said that Dan was a bad person maybe she was right and something important happened in my past.

I took a deep breath and spoke the words fluidly, enunciating each of them perfectly. A warm feeling surged through my body as a headache pounded suddenly away at my head. My vision blurred for a few seconds before regaining it's usual clarity. The textures and details of the room reminded me faintly of a few things in my life that I had known or saw. I closed my eyes and concentrated, trying to recall the past memories of my life. I opened my eyes with no recollection of the events, maybe they had to be stirred somehow.

I sighed and fumbled with the necklace I was wearing. My fingers found a gold and green locket, relatively new. I pressed the gem in the middle and the hinges swung open. My name and Lena's were carved into the gold on the left with a quote made by me on the right. I read the quote and frowned slightly. This must have been hers since the quote had my initials after it. Why would she give me something like this to me to keep? She must have loved me a lot. Reluctantly I continued my musings while I changed my clothes into the simple shirt and leather trousers that Claire said to wear next time to training. I tied the black boots tightly, making sure that they wouldn't untie during the training. I glanced at myself in the mirror, my long hair was shaggy and unkept, I should probably ask Dan if there's a barber in the castle. My eyes were unnaturally green but had a hint of brown in them. I wondered how many light casters were at the castle, so far I had only seen Dark Casters and Celestials. Satisfied that I was presentable enough to attend the session I opened the door and strode down the hall.

The pathway to the circles was easy enough. The castle had a grid like structure to it, rarely were there any curving corridors. Even right after sunrise the grounds were filled with people. Their golden eyes bright with concentration as they clashed against their opponents. The combatants ranged from newbies, with wooden swords, to the best swords masters, practicing with real steel blades. The one thing the ones bordering on mastery had were their bands of red silk, just above the hilt of the blade. A black chalkboard showed tally marks next to the names, they had apparently made a game of training.

Claire was waiting patiently inside one of the circles with two wooden practice swords. She gave a small grin when I walked down to the ring. She tossed me the sword and I caught it. Her black mane was tied back into a braid neatly, though some locks of hair threatened to go past her ear. Her amethyst eyes glowed in the sunlight and she made the simple and unstylish training uniform look good.

"I suppose that we start at the beginning. While you hacked away at me yesterday I noticed a few things. One, your swordsmanship is awful, two, your footwork is awful and three, your execution was crude. We'll work on your swordsmanship today by teaching you some of the basics of attacking and defending." She grabbed the practice sword and dragged me to the center where she showed me simple processions involving some swipes and lunges. The lessons were basic but very useful considering I had never held a sword before. I practiced the patterns while she stood forward and blocked all of them with ease, occasionally saying to speed up the arm movement or increase the power.

I was left panting with sweat dripping from my brow after a few minutes of training. Claire on the other hand showed no signs of fatigue and let out a small yawn. She motioned me over and I picked up the battered practice sword again. This time she taught me how to parry and block. After a few simple slow swings, she began to pick up the pace. I blocked or parried each with increasing difficulty, blocking becoming more useful as she again picked up speed. Her limbs blurred as she repeatedly swiped the blade, leaving a brown streak where the blade was moments before. My muscles strained as I held the swords, unwilling to let go, fearing the damage one of the blows would do to my body.

She began to slow down and let me relax and parry again, easing me back to the center of the ring. When I set foot at the absolute center she lashed at me with increasing vigor. My practice sword rang dully when the blades collided, the wood sounding like it was about to give in. She hacked at me with the tempo she finally decided to set, easing into the tempo took time but I managed. At least I could block an onslaught if needed, then again her motions were painfully obvious, even to a novice like myself.

Suddenly she made a low swipe at my knees, breaking the rhythm we had set. My sore muscles groaned at the sudden change and I barely managed to block the strike. She closed in and slashed again at my neck, this time I couldn't possibly get to block her blade in time. She feinted going for my neck as I raised my arms up to block the nonexistent blow. She whirled around and placed something down the front of my training shirt, that was tucked into my pants snugly. She held her finger over her lip, stopping any further questions I might have asked later before slapping her blade across my back and sending me down onto the dirt face forward. Embarrassed, I groaned painfully and attempted to raise myself off of the ground with the last vestiges of my strength.

"Get up Ethan. You will not have any sympathy in this training. This is hell itself." She made her way over to inspect my training sword and after inspecting it for a few seconds threw it back onto the ground, where my shoulders refused to cooperate. I rolled over on the ground and sat up tired and fatigued. She smirked, still showing no signs of weariness and offered her hand. I gladly accepted it and hid my face in embarrassment. The practice sword was placed in my hands again and I was told to return to the center of the ring. She strode off to the side before grabbing a small green ball that looked like a jelly bean.

"What's that?" I asked curiously.

"A medicine of sorts, it recovers your stamina for the time being. Just swallow it and your strength will return to you." She offered the bead and I grabbed it nervously before chewing even more nervously. It tasted like lemons, I supposed that they put the flavor there to disregard any of the disgustingly bitter herbs that might have been in the pill. As she said I immediately felt revitalized. My muscles were still sore but didn't complain as much as before. She smiled faintly and grabbed the practice sword off of the ground before returning to the center. "This time, you don't have to just block my blows."

I nodded and raised my sword to touch hers in a salute before taking a step back, studying her movements carefully. Neither one of us wanted to strike first in fear of counterattack, though I didn't understand what could make her fear my counters. Evidently she was waiting for me to strike with the constant gaze with her eyes, so I attacked. I slashed across her chest where she blocked the blow with ease, hardly moving her sword. She countered with a simple pattern, two swipes across my chest and a lunge forward. I managed to move out of the stab and retaliate with an uppercut at her left arm that she parried with ease.

Concentration kept her eyes open and alert, scanning my face as if she could tell my actions from my countenance. When none of us moved, she led with a sequence that I had seen one of the swords masters used. It opened with an uppercut to the center of the chest and then two slashes diagonally from the right and left. Two upwards slashes followed where the beginning end of the downwards ones were. Small swipes back and forth down my torso almost wrenched the blade out of my hand. The last blow of the sequence though was a heavy slash that made my blade fly out of my hands and almost hit the man in the next ring over. I felt another object slid down the back of my training uniform, stuck against the back of my sweaty back. She held her blade at my jugular and silently said, "You're dead."

I sat up, my pride smashed and my body in even worse condition. She dismissed me for the day, telling me to be back at the grounds the same time tomorrow. I swear I'm going to die after three days if she keeps up this hellish pace. At least the training kept my mind off of Lena and my past, as trying to not get broken bones was slightly more important. I walked down the gravel path deflated. The board that held all the tally marks had changed again. I saw my name, I had no tallies. I tried to find Claire's name and it was at the top, at least double the amount that the person behind her had. Satisfied that I wasn't the only one that lost horribly against her, I returned to my room, hoping to find a refreshing shower and a fresh change of clothes. I guess today would be the day to explore the castle.

When I flung open the doors to my bedroom, my knees finally caved in, causing me to crash to the ground with a loud thump. My head was dizzy for a few moments and my vision faint, my thighs ached and the spots where Claire's blade had contacted my body burned. Too tired to even groan I crawled over to the bathroom, hoping that the shower was wide enough that I could lay on the bottom or had a stone bench like Lena's did. Her shower had a stone bench? When did I know that? Content that parts of my memory decided to reappear, I had some energy to get off the floor.

I groaned as my sore muscles protested the actions but I made it up finally. I leaned on the wall as I limped my way to the bathroom. I took off my sodden and filthy shirt and trousers, sending two letters fluttering to the ground. I picked them up carefully and placed them on the countertop before my knees gave way again. I untied the chain around my neck carefully and placed it gently on the vanity. Thankfully the shower had another bench and I quickly stripped the rest of my clothes and made my way to the coveted glass cubicle. The water wiped off all the dirt and dust along with sweat that had settled in my hair and skin. I looked down at my body. Discolored patches of skin, ranging from a subtle green to a pitch black marked all the places that Claire had contacted during the lesson.

Getting out of the shower was almost harder than getting in. The stone bench was warm from the shower and inviting but most importantly, already here. I hastily scurried out of the shower before my resolve failed and I returned to the steamy area. I picked up the silver necklace and wrapped it around my neck. I did it involuntarily and I stood there momentarily dumbfounded on why I put it on before I even dried off.

The castle was still hot as a day in summer, yet it was winter back in Gatlin. After I dried off, I found clothes, folded and stacked on top of each other on the bed. A casual button down shirt and blue jeans were perfectly sized for me. The clothes seemed brand new and didn't have a company's tag. A note dropped onto the floor as I unraveled the shirt and flung it over my neck. I picked it up and eyed it carefully.

_Don't worry about common needs such as clothing and laundry. It will be taken care of by Caster maids. They're so much more efficient than mortal ones. I hope you're enjoying the castle so far. If you find yourself bored then pay a visit to the library at the West Gate. Just turn left after the portcullis. Whatever you do, do not go straight. It is a gateway to a land unknown, I don't know if you can return after going through. I'll tell you what the right gate is when I feel it is the right time._

A reread the note again, mostly from curiosity of the pathway he said to not take. I shrugged and made a mental note to pay a visit to the library later in the day, after all it was only noon. I remembered that I had other notes, so I went back to the bathroom and grabbed them from the countertop. I hastily unfolded the crisp white paper and stared at the blotches of ink. Claire had given him both without alerting anyone else. _Do not trust him. _Those were the only four words on the first sheet. Could she mean Dan? I decided that reading the second would be the best idea for understanding what is happening. I reached for the second folded sheet of paper, there were far more ink on this one than the other.

_If you truly want to know who you are then come to the library after evening meal. If Dan has been so kind to make it so that you feel no hunger than come when the sun is about to set. I will be there regardless and I have things to tell you and maybe cure your amnesia. You are something greater than you believe. You had a great life with the people you love, with a lucky girl that was blessed to receive your love. I know you have many questions on why I'm saying this but I promise that I will answer all of your questions. When you finish reading these notes destroy them or hide them. Also maybe this will help with your memory, lemons and rosemary._

I glanced at the message, lemons and rosemary. I felt like it was painfully obvious but I couldn't comprehend the hint. I carefully refolded the cryptic notes and pocketed them in my jeans. The safest place for them would be in my jeans. I found the socks and dragged them over my feet. A new pair of black boots waited for me in the corner. I sighed and put on the boots. They would take some time to break in, if they didn't break me first.

After walking around in the boots for a while they weren't that bad, actually they were amazing. The leather was premium and firm but soft to the touch. The insides had layers of cushioning that formed to my foot. I wondered why I got all the luxuries in the world while there were other people in the castle that wore rags. Hell I even don't have to eat. I pushed open the brown and silver doors leading to the wing that I was housed in and began to walk to the central garden.

I found a bench near the South gate of the castle to avoid most of the dark Casters traversing the East gate. The locket on my necklace resonated softly on my collarbone and produced a comforting warmth. I cusped the locket with one hand and pulled out my notes from my pocket. I scanned the words written on the paper and looked for the memory cast. I took a deep breath and said the words of power for the second time today. I felt the locket's warmth increase and it started to glow a golden light. The scenery started to change around me, warping into another time all together, I barely noticed it, I was too busy trembling with my hand on the locket and reading the words.

Suddenly I was flung back into the stone wall of the castle, no not the stone walls. A normal white plaster wall in a girls room. It was Ravenwood. A figure began to materialize in my peripheral vision. When I turned to see who it was, I was met with black hair and curls. She fell into my arms and I caught her. It was the girl, Lena Duchannes. I stared at her with incredulity as I saw another man, no me, on the bed unconscious. The other me was lying next to another Lena, sitting right next to the other me.

Lena looked up at me wide-eyed and gasped in surprise before biting her lip and lowering her head with a blush on her cheeks. I turned my head slightly in amusement or curiosity, I didn't know. She looked at the scene and her face turned white I walked over to grab her hand. I swear she jumped a bit and her cheeks turned even more pink. She turned to me and I saw her green eyes inspect me carefully.

"What's wrong?" I asked curiously, her eyes had tears gathered at the bottom, all ready to cry. She didn't answer she just looked at me with fear and grief in her eyes. She turned back to the scene unfolding and I did the same. The other me was still unconscious and the other Lena was on top of him, crying her heart out. Tears stained his shirt and the sheets, leaving salty ponds in their wake. She was hysterical, grief consumed her wholly. She was rambling but I could only make out a few words.

"Ethan. Please just wake up. Open your eyes, it'll be okay." She choked out the words slowly, and it felt like a knife in my chest to see her like this. I felt tears welling up in my eyes as well and I quickly glanced at Lena. Tears streamed down her face with silent sobs. The other Lena held her body above the other me. Her hair fell down to my neck, tickling if he were awake. She cried again and planted a kiss on the still lips. She dropped next to him on the bed and curled up besides him. The other me opened his eyes slightly and quietly rasped a few words.

"Lena Beana." She sat up immediately and hovered over his body again. "I'll have to go now, its painful resisting the executioners cast. I'll fall to him soon. I'm sorry for leaving you now, my Lena Beana, but I promise, even if I have to go through all the hells I will find a way back to you." He shut his eyes and his body was still again. A dark circle surrounded by red symbols appeared under him and drug him to the dark depths. Lena quickly grabbed an arm, trying to pull him back up but to no avail. He sunk into the dark and the Cast faded away as if were never there.

The scene faded away, leaving the two of us in an another realm, grey walls surrounding us on all sides. I squeezed her hand lightly and looked her in her gorgeous eyes. "I'm sorry Lena, I don't know what happened to me." The knife twisted again as she buried her head in my chest. Her tears flowing freely now into the depths of my button down shirt. I ran my hand through her curls, the motion was very familiar and I found myself rocking back and forth trying to soothe her. She lifted her head slightly and I took the chance, I brought my lips down onto hers in a kiss. It may have been chaste but it got the point across.

She reached up and ghosted across my cheek, relishing the touch. "I'm sorry Ethan. For everything you've been through. I wish could have been easier with us." She said briefly before adjusting her position so that her head was tucked into my neck. I buried my head into her curls and moved my hands to her waist, drawing her even closer. Her hair was beautiful, the black mane was voluminous. I ran my hands through it again and again. When I buried my head again in it I noticed something distinct and it reminded me about something I had left unfinished at the Castle. It reminded me about the things I had left unfinished at Gatlin. The one thing that led me to her through all odds.

Lemons and Rosemary.


	15. Chapter 15 - Library Meetings

**A/N: So I feel bad right now for using amnesia. It just feels so easy to get away with. Anyway it's gone so I can finally progress with the plot. Again I appreciate the reviews I get. It doesn't have to be praise, although that is nice, I would like criticism on what I need to improve on. With that said, I hope you enjoy.**

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I pushed myself away from the warmth and love that was Lena Duchannes. Headaches dominated my mind to the point that if they were any stronger, my head would implode. I grasped my head with both hands, my blood boiling from the torrent of pain flooding through my mind. A faint cool spot revealed itself faintly in the back of my mind and I hastily concentrated on it. My head felt even more excruciating pain as I felt my teeth begin to grind.

Memories began to flood back into my head, the bad ones though. I saw Sarafine burning herself, Lena being choked to death by the hand of Lucian and worst of all two imposing black clad figures with massive pikes. The cool began to diminish within my mind, I felt like I was going to go mad if this continued. I tugged harder on the faint relief and I was rewarded slowly, the cool gradually permeating throughout my throbbing head. The good began to collapse back into my mind. My first kiss with Lena, Link and his twinkie but most importantly I remembered the night I finally gave Lena the locket as a promise to marry, and her acceptance.

The headache went away almost as quick as it came, my mind refreshed from the memories. I loosened the grip on my head and opened my eyes, quickly closing them again, unused to the odd lighting of the grey box. When I opened them again, I found myself on my knees with Lena across from me her hand on my cheek, her countenance one of horror. I willed the muscles in my face to smile, she must have thought of me insane to smile after such excruciating pain. She must be able to still feel it.

I saw her countenance begin to lift and removed the hand from my cheek. My heart pounded at the thought that she was here and with me for a few more precious seconds. I clasped the small hand in both of mine and tugged gently pulling her body into mine before enveloping her in a crushing embrace. She laughed as I refused to release her from my iron grip, the scent of lemons and rosemary was stronger than ever, or it was just that I had been away from her for a couple of days but it felt like so much longer. It didn't matter, nothing could ruin this moment.

It took the last vestiges of my self control to loosen my grip around her and let her breath properly again. Her countenance had completely changed in the last ten-seconds, she looked more beautiful than ever with the smile on her face. A moment later I found myself with my back on the ground and Lena crying into my chest, soaking my shirt with salty tears. I began to caress her and run my hand through her signature curls, trying to soothe her overwhelmed heart. I gently lifted her head up from my chest and looked into her beautiful green eyes. The happiness was evident in her gaze as well was the love. I couldn't help myself but wrap my arms around her again and roll over, bringing her with me on her side. The usual awkward silence that occurs when we're in a car together happened, this time not in a car.

Lena was the one who broke the silence. "I missed you, more than you can imagine. When I had that dream of you and you couldn't remember my name..." Tears began to stream down her face as she smiled half-heartily. "I lost all hope. I spe..." I never let her finish. I pulled her in closer to me and pressed her lips onto mine. It was a chaste but powerful kiss, to remind her to enjoy the rare moment together. I let go only when I was out of breath, Lena just stared back at me wide-eyed. I stood back up, helping her up as well.

"Ethan..." I lifted up my finger but she continued anyway. "I'm sorry that I ever doubted you. All these weeks after that dream..." At that point I raised an eyebrow and lifted my finger again to her lips, this time she stopped.

"L, I've only been gone for five days, four of them I was asleep for." She looked at me like I was insane.

"Ethan, you've been gone from Gatlin for three months. It's been three weeks since you came to me in that dream." She shook her head. "Where are you anyway?"

"I have no idea, some castle or something. I'm serious though, it's only been a day since I had that dream. I woke up yesterday." She frowned.

"What was this castle called?"

"Headrel or something like that." She was silent for a few minutes, her brow furrowed in concentration. "Great Barrier. It makes sense."

"What."

"Time passes slower there, I can explain it if you want."

I shook my head and drew her even closer to me. "I'd rather enjoy these moments with you right now, I'll find a way to Kelt with you later."

"Then kiss me again." She smiled slightly.

"Yes, ma'am." I crushed her salty lips against mine again. Her arms wrapped around my neck and her legs instinctively wrapped around my waist. I felt her body press against mine as she leaned forward more, her breath ragged and her moans begging for more. Her curves fit perfectly against me, even in this position, as if we were made for each other. I had missed her so much and everything about her, from the way she writes in her notebook to the ardent love present in everything we do together. I felt my mind accepting her consciousness and my body swarmed with fuzzy heat.

Our tongues found each other and began to dance a familiar dance. Only breaking the kiss when our bodies were about to shut down from lack of oxygen. I wanted to do so much more with her right now but I didn't want to ruin the tender moment. Reluctantly, I pulled away from the kiss and felt a rising heat throughout my body. Lena looked disappointed for a second before her visage was replace with pure happiness. Her legs retracted from my waist and were again planted on the ground. Only then did I dare to let go of her waist to ghost her collarbone, eliciting a shiver. A reaction that I put in the back of my mind to use later.

My hand ran along the expanse of silky skin until I reached the place where her charm necklace would be. I frowned slightly and began to reach for the clasp of the chain around my neck. She grabbed my wrist and her eyes were shook her head gently. I tucked a stray curl behind her ear and wrapped my arms around her again, desperately wishing that I could be this close to her for the rest of my life. She returned the embrace and I held onto her tight until I felt if my arms were around her any longer she would have trouble breathing.

As I let go her features began to blur and fade out, the time we had together was running out. I hastily looked down onto myself and found that I was also fading away. I brought my lips onto hers for the third time for another kiss. The sorrow was palpable as we both knew that we probably wouldn't see each other much after this, well she wouldn't see me more than I wouldn't see her. I placed a kiss on her forehead, combing my hand through her black mane while uttering my goodbyes. "I love you Lena Duchannes. I promise you I will find a way back."

I never heard her response, the gray box melted away to show the vivid colors of the central garden. From the sun, it was early in the afternoon, three at most. I stood up quickly, hastily making my way to the West gate for the library. During the walk down the granite walkways, I tried Kelting with Lena to no avail. Whatever the barrier was between where I was and she was too strong. Could it be because of the time barrier? Every day that passed here was more than a week in Gatlin. Her happy countenance at the time when we left lifted my spirits slightly as I continued on the path to the portcullis that guarded the intellectual areas of the castle.

No guards were present at the West gate, scholars and scribes hurried back and forth behind the gates, running between the left side, the library, and the right. The strange thing was that they looked as if they were walking, only that they were going at five times the speed of walking. I walked though the gate, immediately feeling a surge of energy. A powerful cast was placed on the gateway. The same scholars clad in casual looking clothes payed no head to me as they hurried down the pathway. I turned back to look at the central garden, black clad guards moved as though they were wadding in molasses. The hurried movement of the people in rags was slowed to a halt as time seemed to stop. The walls along the path to the library of the imposing fortress were not the same as the flawless stone on the other side of the magical barrier. The mortar used in the creation of the wall was cracked, some bricks were cracked, other completely gone. The state of disarray on this side was astonishing. The other side had been nothing short of a fantasy castle.

After ten-minutes of walking I stood face to face with a tunnel that marked the entrance to the library. The only remains of anything close to a door, were rotted splinters of oak, laying across the entrance. The library was affected by the warp in time as well, the dream didn't show a wall of stone redirecting traffic to its side. Scholars hurried out the left, an unspoken rule of sticking to the right. I wandered in and recoiled at the sight of the beautiful inside.

A stone walkway, made of slabs wound it's way across a hollow interior before stopping at the far wall where a massive glass window filtered sunlight into the otherwise dark and miserable inside. Books lined all the walls except the far one, pilling high until it touched the ceiling. Alcoves to house stairs were made at the left and right, leading down to the next level down. I leaned over the edge of the railing and gulped subtly as I peered down. There must have been at least fifty levels of books, all pilled high. The massive glass window still let light in despite the drop.

I began to walk down the stairs one by one, pitying the scholars that had to use books on the ground floor. Rubies akin to those I saw in Dan's desk in the visions lined the walls, pulsating softly. Doors claimed the stairways, the insides filled with scholars fuming over the messy records presented in the tomes aligned along the library. It was at the lowest level where I saw a door with the spiraling dark pattern of the dark casters embedded into it with onyx stones. Slightly open, I could make out a few figures on my way to the lowest level.

Dan sat in a comfortable looking chair, his hand wrapped around a huge ruby crystal, no doubt the prison of Anders' power. A tall man with platinum hair leaned against the stone wall beside him. A white button down shirt was seen underneath a black blazer that was trimmed with gold. His eyes showed centuries of knowledge but his features proved otherwise. He looked like he could be a bachelor at a college if you ignored the purple eyes. The formal wear reminded me of Macon and eventually Lena.

Dan was the first to speak. "I appreciate you coming here. It's not every day we have visitors to our glorious mountain retreat."

The man let out a small chuckle. "I see that you haven't any vestiges of your sarcasm. You must continue living in this place for the wishes of our friend."

"Who Anders? He had left a long time ago." Dan's face dropped. His usual stone hard countenance fell into pieces. He was asking a question he already knew the answer to.

"No. The other one." The man paused. "I know that you miss her, but you have to get over her for the good of our society. She would have wanted this, you knew Liana the best."

Dan visually tensed at the mention of the name and he shot a pointed stare at his friend. "Don't you dare speak her name." His voice was devoid of emotion, the struggle to contain his rage was evident. The man raised both his hands in mock surrender.

"I will not apologize for something I do not regret doing. You knew it could never be yet you tried to pursuit something that was impossible. I told you over and over, Dan, Li-" A glare cut him off. "She was mortal! You knew the consequences and I tried to warn you. Now you blame me for everything that happened." He paused. Dan looked dejected. "I guess it is my fault, I let you two grow close when your powers really awakened." The sadness in the man's eyes was clear. The subject was clearly one that was rarely brought up due to the severity of what happened.

"I can return her." Dan whispered so softly that it sounded more like a small breeze. "I have both of them and I have the spells. We would have the power to destroy the Era and live in peace forever. You know that they'd never let me go unpunished for my sins against them." His hand came off the crystal and onto his forehead.

"Are you risking everything you have for this one woman. The boy who you now view as a son the thousands of energy crystals that you collected, your very being. You are insane, no wonder why Anders left you Dan. Liana would be disappointed that your heart turned so black. Not only have you ruined a young man's life with his love but now you will ruin everyone and everything that had the displeasure of meeting you." I winced when he mentioned the young man and his love.

"Make that two loves shattered." He replied coldly, the amethyst eyes housing all the pain and insanity that ran through his veins now. "I found the Essence of Light, he was forcibly ripped from his love as well." He said the phrase with some pride in his voice.

The man shook his head. "Not only did you trap and condemn Lucian's girl, Claire, in the time cast, you also trapped Lucian out of the cast. Now you took another boy out of the normal life to your beloved castle. Did you trap him in the cast as well?"

"Yes, it will all be for my beloved Liana. When she is alive, I will purge this world of all those that opposed me and recreate the world. Think of it my old friend. A world without the pain and desperation that plagues it now. It will be perfect and I will offer you a spot as my advisor."

The man's face was stony and his expression unreadable. "The pain and desperation in the world is caused by the happiness and love elsewhere. You are willing to destroy that as well? Perfect my ass. Love for this woman has made you insane Dan." Papers flew off the desk in the background and swirled around the man. His platinum hair glowed with increasing brightness. Dan chuckled and set his hands back on the precious gem in his lap.

"The ultimate natural indeed. Summoning a cyclone big enough so that it only envelops you. You could be my general, so I ask you again will you join me?" The storm died as the papers returned themselves orderly to the desk, looking more organized than before. A show of his power.

"No." Dan's eyes filled with cold rage as he stared at the man who leaned against the stone wall. Dan's own suit was wrinkled and dirty opposed to the impeccable sheen of the mysterious man's. "Look in a mirror and you will see why. You no longer care about yourself, just Liana. Have you asked yourself if she would still love you? After what you did to her? Have you forgotten that she accepted me and not you? Would she run to your arms or mine? You have not asked yourself any of these questions while I've pondered these for days, taking over my thoughts until I passed out from lack of sleep. You took her away from me, so tell me why would I ever join you."

"I knew it was a mistake and I didn't take anything else from my friends." Dan replied coolly, his visage overrun by hate and rage.

"Are you sure it was the only thing? I would object otherwise." A man materialized from the wall, his spiky jet black hair black as ink. His trusty maroon leather overcoat and black boots sounded through the stone of the floor. His amethyst eyes carefully inspecting Dan and his form. A huge black pattern was etched onto his chest and it morphed rapidly as he approached the unwavering Dan. "I believe that you have many things which are mine."

Dan's ground his teeth at the sight of the new arriver. "I never knew that you were one to complain, Anders."

Anders let out a small smile. "You have many things that belong to me. My power, my life, my liberties and even my heart." He opened his overcoat slightly to show a spiraling pattern around the upper left chest. "Most importantly, you took a young man with you that I was entrusted to protect and I would appreciate him back."

"What makes you think that I would ever give the Essence of Light back." He growled.

"Because if you don't then all three of us will." Anders let out another slight grin. Dan raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Last time I checked Anders you could count. What I see before me is two idiots that believe that they can fight me." He smirked.

"Last time I checked I saw a girl come with us." The wall began to ripple. "Ah, there she is." As the wall began to solidify, Anders moved to the wall and helped her. She batted the arm away and looked up before I caught her eyes and her raven curls.

"Dan Marc, I'm sure that you already met Lena Duchannes."


End file.
